During the summer vacation (8/4), the NPUST Smart Media Research Center held teacher training for teachers at Linghe Elementary School in Tainan. With focus given to “computational thinking” the team put together the “Robot Maker Classroom” to train the teachers from the rural the elementary school how incorporate robots into their teaching plans and implement “maker education”.

The courses were organized according to grade level, with teachers of lower grades mainly learning how to use non-computer connected robots, such as mtiny and Botley Robot, in learning activities. For the middle grades, they learned about two popular Lego robots, Lego WeDo and Spark. And for higher grades, the teachers learned how to use MicroBit electronic boards and 3D printing technology. Four different teaching plans were also introduced to the teachers (“Teaching Technology Courses in English”, “Mixed Online Teaching Courses”, “Thematic Teaching Courses”, and “Incorporating Technology into Curriculum”), and together they explored the effectiveness they have on student learning.

The Dean of the NPUST College of Humanities and Social Sciences explained that “the Smart Media Center is the most newly established cross-disciplinary research unit at the college. The center brings together the educational and technology based expertise of teachers within the college and coordinates classwork on industry-academic certifications. In addition to encouraging teachers and students to improve their professional knowledge in science and technology education, the center also continuously counsels primary and secondary schools on the development of robotics teaching curriculum, and conducts “maker education” training. They have already engaged in professional cooperation with many primary and secondary schools in Tainan, Kaohsiung and Pingtung.

The principle of Linghe Elementary School said “we are very grateful to the team from the NPUST Smart Media Center for assisting our school with the development of these professional computer curriculums during the summer break and for providing the teachers and students in this rural area with an opportunity to learn robot education and programming design. With the guidance of NPUST, the teachers at our school plan to incorporate robotics learning into the curriculum in the coming semester and stimulate more diversified learning outcomes. Due to the pandemic over the summer break, the planning for the training was conducted over video call. The team from NPUST provided instructions to the elementary school teachers could so that they could practice the skills and get a solid understanding of how to use the programs and applications.