On Saturday, December 9, more than 32 teams from across Southern California will come together at Crescent Elementary to showcase their skills and abilities at the 3rd Annual “Orange County Classic” – VEQ / IQ Robotics Competition. For the past several months, Robotics Teams from various elementary schools have worked diligently to design their competition robot to compete in regional, national, and international robotics competitions. Students are given the substantial task of designing, building, programming, and driving a robot to complete challenges as efficiently and effectively as possible.
Student robotics teams compete in two categories of activities – the Vex IQ robot “Skills Challenge” and “Teamwork Challenge.” For the Skills Challenge, a single robot ventures out on a 6 x 8 foot “Field” where the robot is “driven” and “autonomously programmed” by students to gather blocks of various sizes, which are placed in “Goals” (box receptacles) for points. For the Teamwork Challenge, robots from two different teams are randomly paired to be on the Field simultaneously to gather the blocks that the robots place in the Goals. The two teams’ respective robots must work together and navigate the Field simultaneously to gather up and place as many blocks as possible to maximize a joint score.
For the three months preceding the competition, students designed, built, engineered, and programmed their respective team’s Vex robot for these challenge activities. Through a “hands-on” process, students learn about design and construction, the mechanics of assembly and engineering, and coding. All the students have designated roles in creating and developing their team’s robot.
After the Orange County Classic Robotics Competition, the top scoring teams will move on to compete at the regional, state, and, if they qualify, at the VEX Robotics Competition “World Championships” in Dallas, Texas in April 2024, presented by the Robotics Education and Competition Foundation. VEX Robotics is the largest and fastest-growing robotics program globally, with over 20,000 teams from 50 countries participating in over 1,700 competitions worldwide.
For the past several years, Crescent’s robotics teams have competed at the highest levels, including having qualified for the World Championships, where they have achieved great success. In 2022-23 alone, all three of Crescent’s Robotics Teams competed at the World Championships, achieving more than a dozen awards combined. Their awards included the top “Excellence” Award, Design, Online Challenge, and Teamwork Awards. Crescent teams also received awards such as the Robot Skills Champion, Innovate Awards, and Build Awards. In the World Championships, the Crescent Robotics Teams placed 4th, 5th, and 6th out of 460+ teams from 45 countries. The Crescent Robotics Teams are thus internationally ranked with an incredible record of accomplishments.
As Crescent Elementary’s VEX Robotics Program Director Rich Ireland explained, VEX Robotics is a “dynamic educational program which is accessible, scalable and affordable.” He continues, “Educational robotics allows educators to engage and inspire the STEM problem solvers of tomorrow.” Ireland is also a teacher at Crescent Elementary, where he runs the school’s STEM Laboratory, which provides more than 850 students with instruction in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) through various hands-on activities and projects.
Crescent Elementary’s Robotics Program is composed of 27 students from 4th through 6th grades and is now in its eleventh year. The program includes an incredibly diverse group of boys and girls. The students were selected from an applicant pool of more than 95 students, which sees even more interest and applications every year. In fact, some students specifically transferred to Crescent Elementary for the school’s signature Robotics Program.
The students are divided into four Robotics Teams of 5 to 6 students each, which include a Team Captain and Parent Coaches/Mentors. The individual teams then collaborate over the course of the 9-month school year to participate in various robotics competitions in California and at the national and international levels, for which Crescent’s teams have consistently qualified.
Crescent’s Robotics Program is also noteworthy because it is incredibly diverse, with students of many different backgrounds. The program includes ten female students, which is a standout among other robotics teams. According to MIT, in 2023, the gender gap in STEM fields will remain significant, with women making up only 28% of the STEM workforce. In this regard, the Crescent Robotics Program is committed to encouraging more girls to learn about the STEM fields, with the hope that more will follow a career path in those disciplines. As parent mentor Christine Gerges states, “What impresses me the most is the program’s encouragement of equal representation of girls in STEM and robotics. This means a lot to me as a mother of three daughters. Crescent Robotics is a great program that gives kids amazing learning opportunities.”
The Crescent Robotics Program demands students and parents ensure the teams are well-prepared to compete and achieve at the highest levels. Ireland says, “It’s equivalent to playing a club sport, which involves the most skilled and talented individuals and requires an incredible commitment by both students and parents.” In some ways, the Robotics Program is even more than demanding. The teams meet and practice three times a week and almost daily as competitions approach. The students also have homework projects and are expected to learn about relevant aspects on their own, such as coding, design protocols, and basic engineering.
Educational robotics facilitates a robust and multifaceted experiential learning process. Students learn to work within constraints, identify multiple solutions to problems, and find the best possible solution through iteration. Students gain valuable exposure to STEM-related areas, including valuable experience in problem-solving, troubleshooting, research and development, invention, and innovation. According to Rithik Baweja, a 4th grader who is on the Robotics team for the first time, “I enjoy building the robots because the only limits are your creativity, and I love technology because it helps us with everyday challenges.”
But more than experience in STEM, students also learn about the value of teamwork and collaboration, critical thinking, creativity, ingenuity, and leadership. The robotics program also facilitates communication skills, time management, and responsibility as they confront the challenges and difficulties encountered in the process of developing their team’s robot. As observed by one of the Parent Coaches, Rahul Deb, whose 5th-grade son is one of the teams, “Students are learning how to build and code for their robot but also learning that, just like in real life, things don’t work the first time and often you must adjust and continuously find ways to improve your ideas. You see first-hand how the most effective learning happens after a failed attempt. But the students continuously iterate the process as a team and work together to reach the desired results, which is exciting to observe.”
Importantly, the Robotics Program facilitates student learning in a fun and engaging way, as students work together towards the common goal of succeeding at the robotic competitions. Avery Perry, a 5th grader in the Robotics Program, states, “Crescent Robotics allows us to practice teamwork and problem-solving. We have so much fun working together, driving, programming, and building.” So, regardless of whether students ultimately end up in the STEM profession, they develop valuable life skills and abilities that will benefit them academically and in their future careers.
As Bharat Odhrani, a parent coach who has been involved with Crescent Robotics for a third year now, states: "Empowering young minds with robotics in elementary school not only sparks curiosity but also cultivates a future where innovation knows no bounds, especially for a generation that embraces the exciting possibilities of technology. Coaching elementary kids on robotics isn't just about gears and mechanisms to move the robots in a certain way; it's about nurturing the seeds of innovation and watching them grow into the next generation of problem solvers.”
Dhaval Parekh, another parent coach in his third year with the program, guides the students through all phases, from concept inception to construction and programming to implementation. “As a mentor, I enjoy watching how the kids improve their creativity, explaining their ideas to others, and showing persistence in solving problems all while having fun,” he states.
The relevance and importance of STEM programs like Crescent Elementary’s Robotics Program cannot be emphasized enough. In the last decade, STEM occupations have grown faster than any other profession. During the next ten years, STEM occupations are projected to have an even faster rate of growth of at least 11%; indeed, some project as much as 15% growth. This is more than twice the rate of growth for all other occupations combined. Simply put, STEM careers present the most opportunities and have the largest growth and career potential scope.
Crescent Robotics is a dynamic educational program that is indeed preparing students for the next century. Programs like this adeptly and effectively prepare tomorrow’s innovators, inventors, problem-solvers, and leaders. All the skills and attributes that the Robotics Program impresses upon students inspire and empower them for future success. Therefore, it is imperative for students, even at the elementary school level, to begin developing relevant skills and abilities by gaining knowledge and experience in STEM-related fields. As described by Dylan Perry, a 4th grader, through the Robotics Program, “we can learn about STEM and the engineering design process, which can help us in our career.” Crescent Elementary School is doing just that – preparing our kids for the future and beyond.
We welcome the opportunity to meet with you for more information or if your organization would like to attend the event. Please contact us so we can make arrangements for your organization to join us.
Contact:
RICH IRELAND, Director / Teacher
VEX / IQ Robotics Program
Crescent Elementary School
Anaheim Hills, California
Email: rireland@orangeusd.org
Phone: (714) 997-6371