This blog was written by Michaela M. from FTC #15333 and FRC #5679. If you are interested in blogging for FIRST Ladies, click here to sign up on the schedule!

​Skills from FIRST?
Many participants of FIRST understand they have developed many skills when in the
program. From coding to mechanisms, team members understand the process of
development. These are qualities that make many FIRST alumni perfect candidates for jobs
within STEM industries. Having already experienced design, product development, and
team collaboration with a deadline of about two and a half to three months, many
companies find these students have found the necessary experience before entering the
workforce. Director of Advanced Technology, Dave Vasko, says that, “ I’m not looking for
particular experience as much as whether people can work collaboratively as part of a
team.”  - a key skill to be successful in a FIRST competition.

Now?
With space missions underway, the popularity and funding for space travel has
dramatically increased within the past ten years, e.g. with the launch of Space X’s Falcon Heavy rocket. In addition, with NASA returning to manned missions to the moon, the idea to explore deep space has never drawn a greater audience since the space shuttle missions began in 1981.  The difference? Today we are getting ready to explore and meet our next challenge: the Red Planet - Mars. This is the goal NASA initially hoped to achieve by the 2030s, meaning this is a task that is destined for our generation: Gen Z: The Mars Generation. We are a generation with the experience of FIRST robotics.

Gen Z: The future?
Gen Z is the future of space travel and we WILL be the ones who will achieve this wondrous
mission to Mars. Having been gathering and acquiring the necessary skills to accomplish
this mission, we are on our way to achieving this historic milestone. Even if there are strict
requirements to becoming an astronaut, such as: “a bachelor’s degree in engineering, biological science, physical science, computer science, or mathematics, followed by three years of professional experience (or 1,000 hours of pilot-in-command time in jet
aircraft)”(CalTech), this is all in addition to NASA’s “astronaut physical examination”. What
does this mean for FIRST participants? This means were are more than ready to take on the
next step in space travel. According to the Cal Tech Jet Propulsion Laboratory, starting a
robotics club at your school is one of the best ways to prepare yourself for, not only college,
but towards your goal of becoming an astronaut.  Over 12,000 people applied between March 3 and 31, 2020 to join the next class of NASA astronauts.  NASA is aiming to reveal the next class of astronauts in October or November 2021. The only thing left to wonder is whether we will be ready when the next call comes? Destination: Mars, nevertheless, WE WILL BE READY!

Why aren’t all K12 schools required to teach technology and engineering as part of the core curriculum?   Recently, I became aware that all states do not require STEM, but that all of them require SM, with many allowing T & E education to be completely optional (STEM).This corresponds to multi-year studies ​services.google.com/fh/files/misc/computer-science-education-in-us-k12schools-2020-report.pdf(google/gallup) showing that many schools are not providing T & E education as a requirement.  
 
If we work together this problem can be fixed for all students across the nation.
 
If all schools in your home state do not yet offer both technology and engineering as core subjects, you can help fix the problem.  Each state's legislature (house) is responsible for developing laws that the state’s department of education must follow, so if your state doesn’t require (by law) technology and engineering for all: the legislature can and should make a law that will begin to fix the problem. 
 
It’s time that those of us who know about the problem connect with those who can fix the problem. First, get a hold of the members of your state’s legislature (House) education committee and let them know that there is a STEM education problem they need to address.  Start here: find your state’s House Education Committee members.  Contact them requesting laws to require Technology and Engineering be required throughout K12 education (primary through grade 12).
 
After contacting the House Education Committee in your home state, work with them to create T & E education laws for all students that will ensure quality T & E education for all students:  STEM for all.

​

STEM is an applied and  interdisciplinary approach to education that should incorporate four specific disciplines:  science, technology, engineering and mathematics.  While science and mathematics have well established curriculums and standards, technology and engineering standards are still in their infancy.  The US government and businesses heavily fund STEM through grants;  however grants are temporary.  To provide STEM education a school must provide classes where technology and engineering are embedded into the required curriculum.

To teach applied fields such as technology and engineering,  active, not passive, learning is best practice.  From preschool through graduation, students should be required to learn both technology and engineering.  As early as preschool, students can learn about building/creating/design (engineering) and programming (robots).   

After learning their letters, young students can start to program using tools such as MIT’s SCRATCH where teachers can easily incorporate programming into a variety of classes such as art, mathematics, reading, writing and music.  Using SCRATCH, young students can draw and animate their own sprites and backgrounds (art),  learn about coordinate systems (mathematics), animate a story (reading and writing) and play music and/or musical notes.  Early STEM education can also incorporate the engineering design process allowing students to not just make a project, but to encourage creativity as they improve their project based on feedback and testing. Many engineering projects can be found on science websites such as Science Project Ideas including building bridges to designing and flying hot air balloons.  

If a teacher is looking for a complete STEM curriculum, Lego robots have kits and materials that can be used to teach T & E alongside any and every subject from art to mathematics to reading/writing.   LEGO Education Library houses a wealth of STEM resources from classroom to competition to play.

Upper education and universities also need to require both the T & E in STEM.  This can be done in many ways.  Examples of technology and engineering classes in upper K12 and colleges/universities should include the basics:  classes on web design with HTML, CSS and JavaScript,  programming languages such as Python, Swift, C#, C# and/or Unity, engineering courses such as CADD /3D printing, networking and computer hardware,  data analysis of big data such as environmental and health,  IoT designs (electrical + engineering and programming), arduinos and/or raspberry pi’s (networking, programming, electronics, design).

​

They kicked the night off with an introduction to FIRST Ladies and a Women in STEM Kahoot.  Then, everyone split up into four breakout groups to play Jackbox games, Codenames, or Sketchful.  The winners of each game will receive prizes soon!  Overall, everyone in attendance had a great time. ​

Seeing the students incorporating their own unique ideas and elements into the program was certainly one of the most memorable moments of this workshop for the mentors.  One mentor said: “I did not expect such enthusiasm from the students; despite the physical barriers, it was extremely fulfilling and inspirational to see the kids express such excitement about programming.”  We were excited to receive this feedback from one of our students: “I enjoyed this workshop and the mentors; someday, I hope to be a Girls of Steel mentor, too!”  ​

Wonder how I created more and more LEGO Robotics Coaches in town ?

I give Free training to more moms like me to become robotics coaches. Today, this army of robot moms teaches in almost 30 Duval county schools. These robot moms are the strong female STEM ambassadors to bring more girls and boys alike into STEM.

Not just moms, we have grandma's and grand dads becoming Robotics Coaches too.

One such Grand Dad Mr.Ken Utting, volunteered his time to help his grandson Cannon’s FLL robotics team - Shiva Atomatrons. Through Coach Ken’s guidance and connection he developed with the team, helped the team win. Last year, Atomatrons won the highest score in qualifiers, Robot Design Award and earned their bid to the State Championship in Delray Beach. And they did it again.

And were selected as one of the very few teams representing the US in the Japan Open Invitational Robotics Tournament. Unfortunately it was cancelled, due to COVID19. Although, what might have been once in a lifetime experience, for all the kids going to Japan, we celebrated our achievement at a Zoom meeting.

Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of their year’s team has been their decision to use a programming language called Python. Python is a general purpose, text based, language used by many thousands of professional programmers. It is much harder to use, but provides a much more realistic programming environment for the kids. Today, the Shiva Atomatrons team with grade 5 to 8 students are using Python for extensive programming.
We all know, Robotics is a fast track to success. What most of us don’t know is that there are 80 million dollar college scholarships available for students who take part in Robotics competitions.

Thus Robotics is a rope to pull a generation up and out of poverty.

Robotics has the power to turn one’s life 180 degrees for good!

When I met Andrew Richardson he was 16 year old, who was repeating eighth grade for the third time, which was such a demeaning experience. He was a young man with no-confidence. He started acting out, in a way that was harmful. The decision was made for him to get therapy. While he was in therapy one of the staff members at Behavioral Therapy Center, who has seen the powerful impact of robotics in her own grandson’s life, recommended Andrew to the LEGO Robotics program. They were willing to offer sponsorship to Andrew to see if he liked it.

During that month I saw potential in him and his natural ability in engineering. I decided to give him a chance and something he didn't know he wanted, a part-time job, and the responsibility that comes with the job. Thanks to the sense of purpose that robotics instilled in him, he was able to leave therapy a short time later almost a complete 180 from when he first started. That year I nudged him to join the FIRST TECH Challenge team, where students build metal robots. Parents and coaches took turns in arranging his rides. It was his first year so there was a lot to learn but he made it through the year. We even completed the hardest mission, the robot lifting itself off the ground and even got the judges award. Today I am very excited to celebrate the fact that he got accepted by Americorp Vista.

We can be the robotics coach guiding students to find their path!

Extrapolating the success of team SHIVA Atomatrons and Andrew Richardson, we want robotics to reach not just more students but ALL students. So we applied for grants and funding to provide robotics training to students in Title 1 schools. Last summer, almost 90 students from Title 1 school attended 1 week of robotics camp, free of cost for them, funded by the city of Jacksonville, in partnership with Communities in Schools of Jacksonville. It was a life changing experience for most students.

Our students are coming back as coaches to pay it forward. Team SHIVA Atomatrons and Andrew Richardson were my camp counselors sharing their joy of LEGO robotics education to 90 more students.

We are STEM role models!

All that it needs is 1 caring and responsible adult with perseverance to change a child’s life. With technology being the inevitable need of the hour, adults taking up the role as a robotics coach can put the child's path to success on a fast track. Just like how being an active dance mom or a soccer dad doesn't need you to know, all the skills, being a robotics coach is easy too.

When you believe in a child and encourage them, they can change the world.

To quote inventor Dean Kamen, the founder of FIRST, ‘We are not using kids to build robots, but we are using robots to build kids’.

Robot building teaches perseverance, team work, problem solving, creative thinking, communication and collaboration
It is not just about building robots, it is about building people who will change the world!
I invite you all to be the driving force behind this movement of building an army of Robot builders.