“Mathematics Building Blocks for Robotics” Workshop in Progress
Five members of the RoboticsEd team are seated at two large circular tables in front of two large screens to present their interactive lesson plans on core mathematical concepts and how they relate to Robotics Research.
July 10, 2023
RISS Alumni Host Robotics Workshop as Part of Rural Outreach Effort
By Jan-Malte Giannikos | riss-ri.cmu@andrew.cmu.edu
On June 12, 2023, the Robotics Education (RoboticsEd) team—composed of Robotics Institute Summer Scholars (RISS) alumni—hosted a robotics workshop for rural high school teachers at the Innovation Institute for Tomorrow in Franklin, PA as part of RISS’s larger effort to bring robotics education to rural and small towns in Pennsylvania.
The workshop, hosted by RoboticsEd team members and former RI Summer Scholars Arnab Dey, Jasmine Jerry Aloor, Willa Potosnak, Kaleb Ben Naveed, and Conner Pulling, presented five interactive lesson plans designed to motivate important mathematical concepts by demonstrating their applications in robotics.
The RoboticsEd Workshop Team and CEO of the Innovation Institute for Tomorrow
Twelve individuals from the workshop team pose in front of a backdrop that features the Innovation Institute for Tomorrow. On the very right is Tim Heffernan, the CEO of the Innovation Institute for Tomorrow
The rural education experience was shaped and curated by RISS co-director, Rachel Burcin. The RISS alums sessions followed a workshop on ChatGPT in the classroom designed by Vishwas Mruthyunjaya, Catherine Evans, and Rachel Burcin, which gave a brief overview of the inner workings of Natural Language Processing and discussed the opportunities and risks associated with the rise of Large Language Models. The PAsmart Grant supported the collaboration.
A discussion session over lunch, organized and facilitated by Angela Keiser, provided an opportunity to discuss and digest the workshop content.
Catherine Evans Presents to a Group of High School Teachers
The back of a woman—Catherine Evans—is shown looking out at a group of high school teachers seated at three large circular tables.
This workshop was the first workshop the RoboticsEd team has hosted, and was an elaboration upon their RoboticsEd website.
The website was developed with the goal to provide resources for teachers and students interested in robotics and STEM. It contains videos, handouts, and interactive lessons on various topics in math and robotics. The material is aimed at students of varying ages from 5th to 12th grade. Aside from educational content, the website also hosts a number of videos outlining the educational journey of students, scholars, and professors at CMU.
The RoboticsEd team, which formed after the members’ time at RISS in 2021, is one example of continued cooperation between RISS scholars and the Robotics Institute.
RISS, an intensive summer research program for talented undergraduate students, provides students the opportunity to participate in state-of-the-art robotics and AI research projects. RISS scholars are partnered with one of CMU’s leading researchers in their respective labs to collaborate on various research projects. In addition to their work in the labs, students have opportunities to network with their peers, CMU researchers, and leading scholars in the fields of computer science, robotics, and AI.
Even after the completion of the internship itself, many RISS scholars continue to work with CMU in some capacity, as evidenced by the RoboticsEd team and their continued work.
The RISS Team would like to thank the Innovation Institute for Tomorrow, Tim Heffernan, and the Franklin community for welcoming us into their town with open arms. We also want to thank all involved in organizing and running the workshops.