Robotics helping to build futures for Alberta Indigenous students – CBC.ca

Whirring to life, elaborate robots constructed by students from three Alberta First Nations showed their stuff Friday at Edmonton school Amiskwaciy Academy.

Students from the Alexander, Alexis and Kainai First Nations demonstrated their skills, driving their robots around obstacles, picking up objects and firing wiffle balls across the room.

"I really like the process of building the robot, starting to build it from scratch, and watching it, piece by piece watching things come together and watching it do what you program it to do," said Foursuns Letendre, a Grade 12 student from Alexis First Nation west of Edmonton.

Quincy Davis and teammate Keyshaun Mountainhorse stand in front of their robot. (John Robertson/CBC)

Most of the machines had already been used in competitions.

The robotics class for Indigenous students was helped by a $40,000 US grant from U.S.-based FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) to the Alberta Distance Learning Centre, which provides learning opportunities for students across the province.

The money covered event registration fees, travel costs and supplies to build robots for competitions.

"We have a six-week build period," said Keyshaun Mountainhorse, a Grade 11 student from Kainai First Nation, 200 kilometres south of Calgary.

"After that we have to bag it up and can't touch it until game day starts. So once you open it you are, like, really excited because you finally get to play with the robot and do the objectives that you have to do.

The teams demonstrated how their robots performed specific tasks. (John Robertson/CBC)

"For me, I'm not as competitive, so if we win or lose it doesn't really matter. At least I got to be in the game and do as good as I can and this actually gives me some skill sets for when I go out of high school."

This is the fourth year of the robotics program at Kainai High School.

Teacher Matthew Prete has noticed a change in his students over that time.

"A lot of our kids are quite shy and reserved," Prete said. "Our kids are quite isolated and so to bring the technology, which is where the world is today, opens their eyes."

Phoebe Arcilla is working with Alberta Distance Learning Centre to encourage students to learn about robotics. (John Robertson/CBC)

His students become more outgoing and confident as they learn about robotics, he said.

"A lot of the jobs that they are going to have probably don't even exist yet, but that is where the world is moving and so we are trying to position them to be in place to move with things."

The team from Kainai First Nation has competed in Calgary, but funding from FIRST allowed the students to travel even further, to Boise, Idaho.

Phoebe Arcilla, a teacher with ADLC, said it's important that students learn computer programming.

Students control the robots through different hand-held controllers. (John Robertson/CBC)

"We use technology every day, whether it's a website or a phone, so kids should know how to program those," Arcilla said. "These are jobs that are taking over."

The robotics program has special meaning for Arcilla, whose first teaching job was on the Alexis First Nation.

Arcilla wants to make her students gain an edge and go as far as they can dream "to the stars, I hope.

"I hope that several of them go and move on into engineering and maybe be astronauts, because that would be the most amazing thing, an Indigenous astronaut."

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Robotics helping to build futures for Alberta Indigenous students - CBC.ca