The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) Region X, in Northern Mindanao, has partnered with a student-run, not-for-profit organisation to encourage more students to try the fields of robotics and engineering.
According to a recent press release, the free robotics classes will be given to students under Grade 10 and will be a part of every Science and Technology (S&T) Caravan in the provinces of Lanao del Norte, Camiguin, and Misamis Occidental.
The What
The organisation aims to increase female enrolment in Engineering and Information Technology courses by providing them free robotics classes.
The free school workshops will use various kits that are both fun and educational.
On top of the free robotics classes, the Department will also be giving free water testing, calibration services, and information materials.
The When and the Where
The first leg of the S&T Caravan will happen on February 28, 2019, at the Linamon Municipal Covered Court, Linamon, Lanao del Norte.
The Department, together with the organisation and the Local Government Unit (LGU) of Linamon, are encouraging the residents of Linamon as well as its neighbouring towns to take part in this activity for the public.
The second leg of the S&T Caravan will happen in Camiguin in May 2019 while the caravan in Misamis Occidental is scheduled in August of the same year.
S&T Caravan will be held in municipal covered courts and will only be accommodating 30 students per caravan as there are only 3 volunteers available.
Partnership Benefits
Partnering with the Department will be beneficial for the organisation because they will get promotion, exposure and wider reach.
The organisation has been having difficulty going to schools and offering their free robotics classes as they are not well known.
This year, they are targeting to be recognised as a non-stock, non-profit organisation under the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Automated Guideway Transit
In other news, the Department will be turning over an Automated Guideway Transit (AGT) prototype to the Bataan Peninsula State University (BPSU) in Balanga City on 14 March 2019.
The elevated train system, developed by engineers from the Department, can run at a speed of 60 km/hr and has a capacity of 30 passengers.
The locally-made prototype costs cheaper, is lightweight, and has zero greenhouse emissions since it is electricity-powered.
Academic program
The turnover signals the start of the Department’s assistance, to be provided through the DOST-Metals Industry Research and Development Centre, in developing an Academic Program in BS Railway Engineering.
It will be offered at the Baccalaureate level as a concrete step in developing the country’s human resource requirement in the transportation sector.
Bringing the AGT prototype in the University, however, is not intended for transportation use.
It will serve as a learning opportunity for the students to be able to study it like a laboratory facility. It will not be there for transportation use.
The turnover of the AGT prototype to the University bodes very well with the Department’s goal of expanding research and higher education capabilities in science and technology for various key sectors.
