Moldova is in the grips of a migration crisis, with thousands of Moldovan youth leaving the country each year to seek work. At the same, Moldova’s ICT industry is growing rapidly, providing well-paying jobs. Targeted interventions in education and skills development to bridge this gap can have a game changing impact on the migration rate.
The MCP Educational Robotics program fills a gap in Moldova’s current education system, providing access to Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM) subjects. With these skills, youth can access well paying jobs in Moldova’s growing ICT industry, and invest in their home country.
More than 10 years of data from the U.S. FIRST foundation, show that children exposed to educational robotics are two times more likely to major in science, engineering or other related fields.
MCP trains teachers in using robotics for educational activities, and equips schools with LEGO robots, creating ‘Robotics clubs’ where students aged 9 to 16 can gain a hands-on application of science and engineering. Students learn to build and program robots to perform different tasks, and develop soft skills like problem solving, critical thinking, and working in teams, also lacking in the traditional Moldovan curriculum.
Participation in Robotics competitions is a key element of the model, spurring teacher and student motivation. Teams from all over Moldova compete in national, regional and international editions of global competitions like FIRST LEGO League, building their confidence, showcasing their talent, and introducing them to the opportunities STEAM can bring
By providing an inspirational STEAM learning environment, the Educational Robotics program provides a pathway for Moldovan youth to access university level STEAM education, qualifying them to access jobs in Moldova’s ICT industry.
The Educational Robotics program in Moldova is highly sustainable, due to MCP’s investment in capacity building delivery partners.
To open a club, schools and libraries must pass through a rigorous application process, starting with training of trainers and proving their commitment to the program, and schools and libraries must co-fund the costs of the Robotics equipment. MCP encourages local community involvement to co-fund robotics kits, competitions and other essential investments, totaling about $165,000 as of end of 2017. This includes school budgets, private businesses, citizens and local governments. Local fundraising efforts ensure the buy-in of parents, teachers and the local community for the project.
Administration of the program is led by the Moldovan Association of ICT Companies (ATIC).
Due to long term cooperation with the Ministry of Education, Educational Robotics is now an optional subject in the Moldovan National Curriculum. Shifting Robotics to a curriculum subject increases its legitimacy in the eyes of parents, students and teachers, and qualifies it to be funded from the public budget, contributing to the sustainability, affordability and accessibility of the program.
The main focus was to continue upgrading teachers’ knowledge and skills, through trainings and community building activities.
Teaching materials, prepared with assistance from Estonian partners, were released in July 2017, providing new methods, products and scenarios to better engage children in learning and engineering activities. A group of 22 more advanced teachers were encouraged to move to higher level programming concepts in graphical language.
The program currently runs on LEGO Mindstorms EV3 robotic sets, LEGO Education’s most popular kit for teaching STEAM. Other types of equipment and platforms are being piloted, such as LEGO WEDO, Makeblock/Mbot on Arduino, to expand the program to younger beneficiaries.
As the MCP Educational Robotics program focuses on elementary and middle school aged youth, it will be many years before the long-term impact of the program can be.
The program began as a small pilot in 2014, and has since expanded nationwide to 112 schools and 13 libraries. More than 4500 Moldovan youth and 150 teachers currently participate in the program. Half the beneficiaries are from rural areas, and more than 30% are girls. Inclusion of rural schools has decreased the digital divide between rural and urban areas and exposed some of the most marginalized and remote communities to modern educational technology. Several champion rural school teachers succeeded in involving over 20% of their school’s pupils in robotics classes. Teachers reported high student interest in robotics, and expect growing engagement in the new school year.
Robotics competitions are held annually. The winning team of FIRST LEGO League Moldova attended the European and global finals in Estonia, Spain, Denmark and the U.S.
The final key impact is on the Moldovan education system itself, with the introduction of Robotics into the optional curriculum, increasing access to STEAM education and new methods of learning.
USAID/Sweden: providing financial support for the MCP Robotics Program
MCP runs the program through its implementing partner, the Moldovan Association of Information and Communications Technology Companies (ATIC), a model that contributes to its long-term sustainability
The program’s guiding partner, NGO Robootika, supports educational robotics programs in over 300 Estonian schools. Robootika assisted with teacher trainings, educational materials, and the First Lego League competition.
Ministry of Education: integration of Educational Robotics into the national curriculum, resulting in increased credibility and financial sustainability.
