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Podcast Series: Innovations in Education

Explore the full series of eSchool News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.

6 tools to help kids learn coding and robotics

Introducing students to coding and robotics gives them early exposure to STEM in general. This early exposure, according to research, is key to the future of the workforce.

Aside from the cool factor K-12 coding and robotics offers, students will learn a number of skills they’ll take with them well into adulthood, including creativity, problem solving, and the ability to fail without quitting. These skills stick around even if students don’t pursue STEM-related study paths or careers later in their lives.

Coding and robotics can be introduced in any subject, with a little creativity.…Read More

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Why girls need more STEM role models

This story was originally published by Chalkbeat. Sign up for their newsletters at ckbe.at/newsletters.

My Advanced Placement computer science course is half girls and half boys. I coach an award-winning robotics team, Retro5ive, that is equally balanced between girls and boys, nearly all of whom are students of color.

Getting there requires combating gender norms and stereotypes every day. This fall, while conducting a two-week Tools and Build module with the robotics team, I held up a pop rivet gun and asked students what it was. Here’s a recap of an exchange between me, a boy who was learning about the team, and a few girls on the team.…Read More

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SESI Kids Win Big! SESI Crixas TEAM from Brazil Are CoderZ League Champions in the Global Virtual Coding & Robotics Competition

DERRY, N.H – Feb. 23, 2022 – SESI, Brazil’s Social Service of Industry (SESI), had a vision: To equip the kids in their network of more than 400 schools in all 27 states with the technological skills, knowledge, and tools to become the leaders of tomorrow—the era of Industry 4.0.

Between October 2021 and January 2022, over 50 teams from across Brazil participated in the CoderZ League, an international virtual robotics competition. All teams worked together to solve missions and challenges, while the top competitors advanced to the Brazilian playoffs. Team ‘Takamassa Numuro’, from SESI Crixás in Goiás (GO), advanced to the world championship which was broadcast live to audiences from all over the globe.

During the world finals, SESI’s students competed virtually with teams from USA, Ghana, Singapore, and Hong Kong—before eventually winning the title of world champions for the CoderZ League Junior Division.…Read More

Osmo From BYJU’s Names Kar-Han Tan, Ph.D., Head of Computer Vision and Machine Learning

Palo Alto, CA–Feb 10, 2022–Award-winning STEAM brand, Osmo from BYJU’S, announces Kar-Han Tan’s appointment as Head of Computer Vision and Machine Learning, effective immediately. With three decades leading teams in robotics and AI research and development, Tan will further thedevelopment of a world-class computer vision and AI platform that aids in the creation of new products, games, and devices incorporating gains made in deep learning technology. In addition, he will lead a growing global team to research, develop, and optimize new algorithms for computer vision and AI-enabled features such as object detection, object recognition, hand tracking, pattern matching, and hand-drawing analysis, among others, all in an effort to create the best learning tools and outcomes.

“We were impressed by Kar-Han’s extensive experience leading R&D teams in robotics, AI, and deep learning,” says Mark Solomon, Senior Vice President of Products and Platform at BYJU’S. “His background will help Osmo expand the usage of computer vision technology across BYJU’S various products and platforms, further meeting the needs of learners of all ages everywhere.”

Tan, who was born and educated in Singapore, most recently founded Helpful Robotics LLC, which designed and built an AI-enabled autonomous assistive robot from the ground up, and fostered a collaboration between scientists and engineers located in the San Francisco Bay Area, including the University of California San Francisco, and at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.…Read More

The Steam Foundation Teams Up with MakerBot to Expand Access to 3D Printing for Students

January 14, 2022 — The Steam Foundation and MakerBot have teamed up to bring 3D printing to more students across the U.S. Founded by Aadhav Prabu and Akshar Raikanti, The Steam Foundation is a California-based nonprofit with a mission to make STEAM education equally accessible to all students in kindergarten through 12th grade. The organization, which is also run by a team of students, offers free workshops that teach 3D printing, robotics, graphic design, and coding to students as well as programs to help bring 3D printing into schools.

Prabu and Raikanti are currently juniors at Dougherty Valley High School in San Ramon, Calif., and have been teaching 3D printing for years. They were inspired to start the organization after seeing how engaged students were in their 3D printing club in middle school.

“When Akshar and I ran the 3D printing club, we saw how excited students were for the chance to use the Replicator+. For some of them, it was the first time they had ever seen a 3D printer. We started The Steam Foundation to give more students the chance to learn about 3D printing,” said Prabu. “We’re fortunate to work with MakerBot, a company which has the same commitment toward 3D printing in education as we do.” MakerBot donated 3D printing equipment and materials to support the Foundation’s mission and programs.…Read More

4 ways to support the growing role robotics will have in society

In the past decade, robotics have evolved from a sci-fi fantasy set in some distant future to an industry capable of producing present-tense toys, companions, workers and self-driving cars. And this is just the beginning. The industry forecast calls for a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of around 26 percent, which would mean a value of $210 billion by 2025.

The inventors (and users) of tomorrow are children sitting in preK-12 classrooms right now, who by and large are not learning about robotics. This represents a huge opportunity for education technology companies. Robots promise to become a bigger part of our daily lives as the industry shifts from being primarily industrial-driven to increasingly consumer-oriented. As they expand beyond the warehouse to wherever we need them, robots will become more diverse, intuitive and useful.

The speed of change has been impressive in recent years and will only accelerate as machine learning and neural networks endow robots with human-like senses, allowing them to “see” and even “taste” like we do.  The skills children learn through robotics could certainly lead to career opportunities later, but that’s not the only reason to embrace the ABCs of androids. In addition to a range of science and math skills, students can practice problem-solving and creativity as well. We’ve arrived at a tipping point in robotics, and for education, that represents lifelong learning opportunities.…Read More

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CoderZ Launches Initiative to Engage Students in STEM with the Amazon Cyber Robotics Challenge

DERRY, N.H. – Aug. 18, 2021 – Starting August 1, CoderZ will once again bring a real-world industry perspective to computer science classrooms through the Amazon Cyber Robotics Challenge. In this free, three-hour virtual learning experience, students develop basic computer science skills while discovering the ways that goods are delivered at Amazon. This year’s #StepintoSTEM challenge provides teachers access to resources that make instruction simple for them, regardless of their computer science background.

The Amazon Cyber Robotics Challenge transports students to a virtual Amazon warehouse where they practice coding, computational thinking, and computer science. Students collaborate with their friends through hands-on, gamified, and mission-based activities, which involve coding an Amazon Hercules robot. In addition, they meet students interning at Amazon as well as real engineers who are using STEM and computer science skills every day. Participants who share the activity on social media will be sent a teacher goodie bag.

“Last year, 120,000 students received access to the program. The feedback from teachers was exemplary, so we want to see that number grow during these essential back-to-school months,” said CEO of CoderZ, Ido Yerushalmi. “Our mission this year is to introduce 200,000 more students to the interdisciplinary skills that STEM develops, including future-ready skills, SEL, and more. As always, we recommend the challenge for grades four and above.”…Read More

5 reasons to set up a coding program in your district

At Everett Public Schools, we’ve always had a robotics team at the elementary and secondary levels. Last year we were up to 50 robotics teams within the FIRST organization. During the shutdown, we went into a panic over how students wouldn’t be able to physically “touch” and work on the robots on campus anymore.

I didn’t want to lose our robotics stipend, nor did we want students to miss out on that learning during the shutdown. For help, we started searching for an online platform that would augment our in-person robotics curriculum.

We found what we were looking for in CoderZ and soon after, we shifted our entire robotics curriculum over to that platform. We weren’t sure how many students would want to log in from home voluntarily, but our participation levels have actually grown since the pandemic shut down in-person learning in March 2020.…Read More

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Robotify Partners with Steve Wozniak’s Woz ED to Virtualize the STEM Learning Experience

Global virtual robotics education company Robotify has partnered with Steve Wozniak’s Woz ED to provide over 3,500 schools, coding clubs and school districts across the globe with cost-effective access to the world’s most premium robotics technology.

In a cutting-edge deal, Irish-based Robotify is providing their proprietary software to Woz ED which allows the company to virtualize its physical STEM pathways, providing students with a virtual robotics experience in addition to existing physical experiences. The deal will see both companies collaborate to reach tens of thousands of students around the world to give them equitable access to coding and robotics educational content.

“I’m impressed with the way Robotify makes coding engaging and accessible. By virtualizing the technology, more young people will have the opportunity to learn and explore,” said Steve Wozniak, Apple Co-Founder & Founder of Woz ED. “Both Woz ED and Robotify focus on ensuring young learners are job-ready for the most in-demand tech sector openings. We provide learners with the opportunity to engage in authentic projects to help them understand what work they love and excel at.”…Read More

Mesa Public Schools and S.A.V.E. Consortium Name CoderZ as Approved Vendor

DERRY, N.H. – May 11, 2021 – CoderZ, creators of innovative educational solutions using virtual robotics to bring core subject areas like math and science to life through real-world applications, today announced that it has been selected as an approved STEM curriculum resource for enrichment by Mesa Public Schools and the Strategic Alliance for Volume Expenditures (S.A.V.E.) consortium.

“We are extremely honored to be selected as a preferred provider,” said CoderZ CEO, Ido Yerushalmi. “With this vetting initiative complete, Mesa Public Schools along with S.A.V.E. members, can implement our well-structured and inclusive curriculum with the knowledge that the program meets and exceeds the requirements to become an integral component of a school’s STEM implementation.”

The requests for proposals covered the following areas:…Read More