One thousand Camden students learn to program robots
Maria Fidelis students are among over 1,000 secondary school students who have learned how to program through the use of robots, thanks to extra investment from Camden Council.
The Year 7 pupils have built Lego robots and learned to write programs to instruct them to move backwards, forwards and around objects.
All state secondary schools in Camden are now participating in Get Camden Coding - a series of innovative lessons to promote the new computing curriculum provided by specialist trainer, the Film and Video Workshop. The lessons, complemented by training for teachers, are part of a partnership with University College London’s Department of Computer Science.
Simon Oatley, Director of the Film and Video Workshop, said: “No other local authority has invested in this way to inspire children to take up these aspects of the new computing curriculum, which involves using computer coding to manipulate objects.”
“We need to start children early to get them excited by the new computing curriculum. We are doing that here in Camden by enabling children in primary and secondary schools to experiment with coding, manipulating robots and mini-computers, as well as multi-media applications, so they can see the practical uses of computer programming in daily life.
“Camden is home to very many creative industries at the cutting-edge of technology, from games to video special effects and the world’s leading hi-tech firms. We want children here to be able to work in those industries, not just be passive consumers of technology. We could be helping the future engineers of the driverless car!”
Halima Bhayat, head of ICT and computer science at Maria Fidelis School, said: “The students are learning how technology applies to the real world and how to problem-solve, which are valuable skills for university and the kinds of jobs they are likely to be applying for in the future.”