Collaboration with Impact Training
Connected Learning Tutors, Oseghale Igene, Salman Ahmad, Kabirat and Fiona North visited Impact Training in Lanark Place in Belfast, courtesy of Gerard Fox and Lesa McKee to facilitate training sessions with youth in their local community.
In our first session with we introduced them to robotics using the Pico microelectronics board and our Hungry Robot.
who is a Ph.D. researcher led a lively discussion with the team discussing the impact of robotics and AI on society and its implications for the future generation. We may have some youth who would make great politicians!
In the second week as the students wanted more advanced programming sessions we used the Wio Terminal microelectronics board with the Arduino IDE to demonstrate C programming and the students excelled in making animated robot faces.
We finished with some fun learning sessions solving puzzles with the game and they experienced the Metaverse with VR headsets.
Impact Training gave us a tour of their amazing facilities including wood work, metal work and hairdressing. We swapped ideas about using Sphero robots for educational engagement. I might pop in to get my hair done by the students there as many academics need a restyle as we sometimes are thinking so hard!
We are looking forward to next week when the team visit Â鶹Íø and we introduce them to soldering and electronics in the Ashby and playing with the robots.
We must thank everyone who made this possible as it really is a collaborative effort across many teams. This includes who introduced the Connected Learning Team to Impact Training, who suggested the introductory robotics projects and facilitated collaboration, who supplied the Robomaster robots and drones, Trisha O'Reilly who lent her VR headsets, the skilled technicians in the Ashby including Jim Norney, Tony Boyle , Gerry Rafferty who helped with soldering set up and risk assessments, who provided expertise and approved my risk assessments in a timely manner, estates who gave us access to load and unload in the car park, Alex Barnes one of our students who helped with 3D Printing in the QLab, and who helped with setting up computers. Finally I must thank the young people from Impact who were so engaging, polite and helpful and their training facilitators Gerard Fox and Lesa McKee who are so inspiring.
Connected Learning Tutors: , Salman Ahmad,