New Documentary by World Robot Olympiad Reveals Why Kids Fall in Love with Robotics

GYOR, Hungary, Oct. 31, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Robotics can forge friendships across borders and make teenagers choose a career in STEM. A new documentary, premiering during the World Robot Olympiad in Hungary in November, reveals why kids fall in love with coding and robotics.

Robotics is not just the stuff of sci-fi movies anymore, but something every child can – and should – learn to develop skills that employers are already prizing. That is the mission of World Robot Olympiad^™: to introduce STEM through fun robotics competitions and connecting thousands of children and youth regardless of their nationality and background. A new documentary – ME & MY ROBOT – follows several WRO® teams to show how robotics impact the way kids see and interact with the world around them. The documentary premieres November 8 during the international final in Hungary, and will be part of a campaign to inspire students to explore their interest in STEM. 

Watch the trailer for ME & MY ROBOT on YouTube

New friend, bonus family and first place

Fabian and Adib are two of the kids featured in the documentary. The story of how they became a team is remarkable. In 2016, Adib moved from Syria to Germany with his family, because the situation in Edlib had become too dangerous. His plan was to continue with robotics in Germany, maybe to forget about the war and leaving home. To find a partner, Adib looked for participants in robotic competitions and came across Fabian, who appeared to be the only other teenager in the state working with robotics in their age group. By a stroke of luck Fabian went to a school in Halle, Adib's new home town.

They met, and despite the fact they didn't share a language, they talked 2-3 hours about building better algorithms and robots. The first year they communicated in English. The second year Adib was fluent in German and they won 1st place in the German national WRO^© final. Adib says:

"The main reason I speak German is because of Fabian's parents. I went climbing, swimming, and skiing with the family. They showed me how cool Germany is and have helped me a lot with practical things. They still do."

'Where else could this happen'

Last year at the international WRO final in Thailand, Adib and Fabian talked to the Russian team. They communicated through Google translate, exchanged email and are still developing algorithms together. Adib says:

"They build algorithms on top of ours, which is extra cool. Where else could this happen: Syrians, Germans and Russians coding together? This kind of experience can't be taught at university or on your own. You have to exchange ideas and learn from other experienced people."

Adib's and Fabian's passion for robotics and LEGO have been passed on to their younger brothers, who now participate in WRO. Word of mouth is one way to acquaint more kids with STEM. Another is collaboration between NGOs, companies, governments and universities who want to help foster the engineers and inventors of tomorrow. Like the international WRO final in November which is hosted by the Hungarian government and Edutus University – and ME & MY ROBOT, which is presented by Juniper Networks and executive producer James Redford.

Invitation to see the premiere

World Robot Olympiad, the Hungarian government and Edutus University invites interested journalists to the international final in Győr. There will be press conferences on the 8th and 10th of November.

Find registration for journalists at wro2019.org.

Venue

Olimpic Sport Park, 9025 Győr, Radnóti Miklós út 46

Facts

•  The documentary was filmed up to and during the international final in Thailand 2018.
•  More than 27,000 teams are participating in national WRO competitions in 2019.
•  The international WRO final attracts 400 teams from 65 countries and 3,000 visitors.
•  Teams consist of two to three young people supervised by a coach.

Find more information at wro-association.org
Follow WRO on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter @WROOfficial.

Contact

For information about the documentary:

Please email [email protected]
Watch the trailer and learn more at MeandmyRobotFilm.com

For information about the international final in Hungary: 

Luca Bodosi
E-mail: [email protected]  
Visit wro2019.org for more information.

For information about WRO

Claus Ditlev Christensen, Secretary General, WRO Association Limited
E-mail: [email protected]

SOURCE World Robot Olympiad Association