Robotics 101 for GHSD teachers

Miriam Ostermann
Times Associate Editor

 

Nearly 30 teachers engaged in a convivial and inventive learning experience outside their classrooms last week, when Golden Hills School Division (GHSD) organized an interactive information training session to introduce the educators to robotic technology now available for their students’ learning enhancement.
The school division recently purchased 13 robots, Lego Mindstorms EV3 Education Edition, from Spectrum Nasco, which is a company that distributes the technology through a Lego division known as Lego Education.
The kits, which come equipped with the plastic units, electronic components, an intelligent brick, sensors and three motors, provide its user with a hands-on and minds-on approach for physical and mechanical learning and understanding coding and programming concepts. For GHSD, bringing such technology into the classrooms is essential for the future success of its students.
“When we’re looking at collaboration, critical thinking, and problem solving, these are all skills our students would need for 21st century learning, and I think that at any time that you can work together as a group to solve something hands on is very beneficial to our students,” said GHSD Director of Student Assessment and Curriculum Support Jeff Grimsdale.
“In the afternoon, we had Jeff Wilson the [executive director] of Brilliant Labs and he was talking about coding and robotics and artificial intelligence and how it’s going to be the new way. We have to prepare our students for this and this is just one of the steps towards getting there.”
Golden Hills School Division will be housing the 13 kits at their Instructional Material Centre – on loan for the 25 schools in its division. Typically ranging in size from 20 cm by 15 cm, the models retail at $415 per unit. With the help of Spectrum Nasco’s robotics sales consultant Jeff Warner teachers received a crash course on how to operate the robots on Jan. 20. Having seen the positive effects on children’s day-to-day learning through the act of programming, coding, and interacting with the machines, Warner – a teacher himself – said education in Alberta is embracing the approach faster than most other Canadian province.
“There’s a strong movement that is gaining momentum which really sees the value in teaching children to program as an educational tool … certainly robotics is an extremely popular form because what you’re programming is an actual physical machine so there’s a very interactive element to it,” Warner said.
“I really want to open people’s minds that there is a very effective fundamental math and science learning that goes on while student are working with the robots. I found that traditionally people see these as a computer science or a technology tool… but I think until people really put it into play and meet with someone like me, who really knows math and science education, it’s amazing the kinds of fundamental skills that it teaches.”
The company sold 1,300 kits in Alberta last year, most often to school divisions or camps. According to Warner the First Lego League Competition raised the profile of robotics in Alberta, along with the support of numerous industrial companies to promote the advancements in the field.
While GHSD will have the robots readily available, three of their schools already took initiative and purchased their own models.
“When those schools start growing those programs they purchase them for themselves,” Grimsdale said. “It’s initial to get the spark going. The interest has been growing. We had pockets of it happening in our school division so we just wanted to share it with the other schools.”