STEM

District Placing Robotics Teams into Every School by 2021

• By Dian Schaffhauser
• 12/09/19

A Maryland school system intends to make robotics ubiquitous, including development of robotics teams for every school by 2021. Carroll County Public Schools explored the initiative during a November board meeting, when the district announced that it would incorporate the FIRST Robotics program in elementary, middle and high school. The work was undertaken based on community feedback that expressed a desire for "more STEM and robotic experiences" for students.

The county is familiar with competitive robotics. One of its high schools teams was ranked as the fourth best in the world, based on its performance during the 2019 FIRST Robotics World Championship in Detroit.

The new focus, according to a presentation made by Jason Anderson, the school system's chief academic, equity and accountability officer, was to help students "gain hands-on STEM experiences, build confidence, growth their knowledge and develop habits of learning."

The robotics work would rely on local funding for coach stipends and grants for other expenses. The Kahlert Foundation committed to a two-year start-up grant for $80,000; and the Maryland State Department of Education and the homegrown Partnership for Inspiration in Engineering (PIE3) offered a $29,000 grant. The district said it would rely on the community for additional grants and expertise, to support the programs in the future.

Funding will cover a two-day training session for first-time robotics coaches, which has been dubbed "LEGO School," according to local reporting. The job of robotics coaches, added Anderson, were to "encourage students to try, fail, and try again, while connecting STEM concepts to real-world examples."

The district will kick off its recharged robotics direction by participating in the upcoming "Annual Roar of the Robotics," a FIRST LEGO League tournament hosted by PIE3, which is taking place at nearby Carroll Community College.