ED35-1: FIRST Robotics Competition

Instructor: Daniel Ward - Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana

Class Description: The FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition is an exciting, nationwide, made-for-television engineering competition that teams professionals and young people to solve an engineering design problem in an intense and competitive way utilizing design tools from Autodesk. The competition shows students that the technological fields hold many opportunities and that the basic concepts of science, math, engineering, and design are exciting and interesting. The competitions challenge teams of students and their mentors to solve a common problem by building a robot in a six-week timeframe using a standard "kit of parts" and a common set of rules. The design/build process and the competitions demonstrate that engineering and science can be as interesting, captivating, and entertaining as any sporting event. These experiences not only grab the imagination and attention of the participants, but are big enough, noisy enough, and fun enough to attract the attention of other students, mentors, businesses, and the community, which is one of the major goals of the FIRST organization. Students are encouraged to learn about technology and science outside of the classroom. They form binding ties to local industry and educational entities to learn how to accomplish their goals. And finally, they show what they have learned to the world through competition, promotion, sharing, and “gracious professionalism.”