STEM Education - Students Touch Space Through Free Robotics Programming Competition

Jenny Liu, Wendy Feenstra, Alvar Saenz Otero, Kathleen Magrane

2014

Abstract

This position paper discusses the use of the Zero Robotics Summer Program competition as a tool to teach programing to students in middle school (ages 11-14). The benefits of teaching programing at that age are discussed, including grasping the student attention early on and providing a useful skill. Zero Robotics is a free programming competition where students program microsatellites to compete with other student-programmed satellites in a virtual game using an online simulation. The finalists see their code compete on the SPHERES satellites aboard the International Space Station, during a final competition transmitted live. The game and curriculum teaches students physics, mathematics, and programming concepts. This position paper argues that it is possible to engage students in programing by providing the right incentive (space) through a competitive environment where teachers have a curriculum to back them up, without becoming a standard classroom exercise.

References

  1. Afterschool Alliance, et al, 2011, “STEM Learning in Afterschool: An Analysis of Impact and Outcomes”, www.afterschoolalliance.org.
  2. Farr, C, 2013, “What's the right age for kids to learn to code?”, http://venturebeat.com/2013/06/25/whats-theright-age-for-kids-to-learn-to-code-debate/
  3. Fell, J, 2013, “Yahoo Acquires Teen Entrepreneur's News Gathering App, Summly”, http:// www.entrepreneur.com/article/226196.
  4. Koerner, B., 2013, “Forget Foreign Languages and Music. Teach Our Kids to Code.”, http:// www.wired.com/opinion/2013/09/ap_code/
  5. Microsoft, 2013, “Microsoft Introduces Imagine Cup Competition for Young Students”, http://www. microsoft.com/en-us/news/press/2013/mar13/03- 19koduchallengepr.aspx.
  6. Reville, P, 2010, “Closing the Inspiration Gap: A Major STEM Challenge”, www.mass.gov.
  7. Rushkoff, D, 2012, “Teach U.S. kids to write computer code”, http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/10/opinion/ rushkoff-code-writing/index.html?hpt=hp_bn7.
  8. Saenz-Otero, A, 2005, “Design Principles for the Development of Space Technology Maturation Laboratories Aboard the International Space Station”, Doctoral Thesis, MIT, Cambridge MA.
  9. Saenz-Otero, A, et al, 2010, “ZERO-Robotics: A Student Competition aboard the International Space Station”, IEEE Aerospace Conference.
  10. Thomasian, J, 2012, “The Role of Informal Science in the State Education Agenda”, www.nga.org.
  11. Thompson, A, 2010, “Programming Contests - for good or for ill”, http://blogs.msdn.com/b/alfredth/archive/ 2010/02/11/programming-contests-for-good-or-forill.aspx.
  12. Wertz, J, Chen, A, et al, 2000, “SPHERES: A Testbed for Long Duration Satellite Formation Flying in MicroGravity Conditions”, Proceedings of the AAS/AIAA Space Flight Mechanics Meeting, AAS 00-110, Clearwater, FL.
  13. Wilson, R, 2012 “Computer programming will soon reach all Estonian schoolchildren”, http://ubuntulife.net/ computer-programming-for-all-estonianschoolchildren/
Download


Paper Citation


in Harvard Style

Liu J., Feenstra W., Saenz Otero A. and Magrane K. (2014). STEM Education - Students Touch Space Through Free Robotics Programming Competition . In Proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Computer Supported Education - Volume 2: CSEDU, ISBN 978-989-758-021-5, pages 270-274. DOI: 10.5220/0004944802700274


in Bibtex Style

@conference{csedu14,
author={Jenny Liu and Wendy Feenstra and Alvar Saenz Otero and Kathleen Magrane},
title={STEM Education - Students Touch Space Through Free Robotics Programming Competition},
booktitle={Proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Computer Supported Education - Volume 2: CSEDU,},
year={2014},
pages={270-274},
publisher={SciTePress},
organization={INSTICC},
doi={10.5220/0004944802700274},
isbn={978-989-758-021-5},
}


in EndNote Style

TY - CONF
JO - Proceedings of the 6th International Conference on Computer Supported Education - Volume 2: CSEDU,
TI - STEM Education - Students Touch Space Through Free Robotics Programming Competition
SN - 978-989-758-021-5
AU - Liu J.
AU - Feenstra W.
AU - Saenz Otero A.
AU - Magrane K.
PY - 2014
SP - 270
EP - 274
DO - 10.5220/0004944802700274