The Botswana Digital and Innovation Hub’s (BDIH) outreach partner, Dare to Dream, together with Swerve Robotics from the USA, have successfully concluded training of educators aimed at equipping them with necessary skills and knowledge to establish robotics and coding clubs.
The three-day training programme for teachers in the southern region of Botswana, under the programme known as First Lego League (FLL) Training of Trainers, took place at the Hub’ Training Room earlier this month.
In a statement, the BDIH said educators were trained to guide students in participating in both local and international FIRST LEGO League (FLL) competitions. Teachers from Mahupu Unified School, Matsha College, Lobatse Senior School, Mogoditshane Junior School, Kgale Hill School and Mmakgori Primary School actively participated in the training.
Captain Kgomotso Phatsimo, the Founder of Dare to Dream, expressed her delight with the impressive turnout,
“We are delighted with the turnout and anticipate that soon schools in Gaborone and its surrounding areas, as well as the Ngamiland region, will begin to see a shift towards the formation of robotics and coding clubs,” she said. “This will result in an increased presence of local teams in FLL competitions. It is our belief that this initiative will contribute to building a tech-savvy Botswana.”
The FIRST LEGO League is a renowned robotics competition designed for students aged nine to 16. It encourages participants to apply concepts and principles of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) to real-world challenges. Through FLL, students collaborate in teams to design, build, and programme autonomous robots using LEGO Mindstorms kits. The competition also includes a research project component, which encourages students to identify and propose solutions to real-life problems.
Swerve Robotics, established in 2006 with a mission to promote STEM through FIRST Robotics programmes, partnered with Dare to Dream to support the youth in Botswana.
Heidi Lovett, the Founder of Swerve Robotics, emphasised their shared vision of inspiring young minds to embrace technology and innovation.
“We have a mutual vision of inspiring young minds to embrace technology and innovation, and this partnership represents our commitment to nurturing the next generation of engineers, scientists, and inventors in Botswana,” she said.
The three-day programme featured a range of activities, including training of trainers, robotic games, innovation project presentations, and awarding of certificates. As a result, teachers from the participating schools will now begin preparing their students in coding and robotics to participate in the FIRST LEGO League competitions scheduled for October 2023.
