Students of Harmony Secondary School in Wismar, Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) were the first to be introduced to the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Guyana Robotics Workshop on Monday.
The programme which is aimed at sparking inspiration and to introduce the students to a new way of using modern technology saw 34 students participating in the four-days workshop which is been hosted in collaboration with STEM Guyana’s co-founder, Karen Abrams and Team Guyana.
First Lady Sandra Granger handing over Robotics Kits to the students and head teacher of Harmony Secondary School, Vernell Razack-Giles
During her address to the students, First Lady Sandra Granger said the STEM workshops have had tremendous success across the country. She urged the students to embrace the opportunity to learn as it may inspire their future career choices.
“Anything that your imagination can conceive, you can make it with a robot and you can programme it because apart from what you are doing now in school, this is where the jobs will be… You are the first school to be having a robotics camp in Linden and I hope you will set up, with your teachers’ assistance, your own robotics club, so that you could begin competing nationally,” the First Lady said.
Mrs Granger further explained that consideration is being given to a written request from Head of the Science Department and Integrated Science Teacher, Abigail Samuels, for some much-needed equipment to aid the learning process.
Meanwhile, in her charge to the students, founder of the STEM robotics programme, Karen Abrams, urged the participants to create similar social application programme as the popular Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram and other social media platforms
“What we are trying to do, in collaboration with the Office of the First Lady, is to allow you to prepare for the next generation of developments all over the world that will require knowledge of technology,” she said.
In an invited comment, 16-year-old Third Form student, Master Clairmont Skeete, said although he does not know much about robotics, he was excited to be participating in the workshop. ”It would be something good coming to the school because it will allow the children to learn and to build different things,” he said.
The hosting of the workshops is made possible by donations from several groups and businesses locally and in Canada and the United States.
Since the programme’s introduction, STEM Guyana launched the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) app and took a team to the first Global Robotics Olympics where they placed tenth after six rounds.
