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Presentation to the Prime Minister’s Science, Engineering and Innovation Council PMSEIC in Parliament House on 28^th November 2003

University of South Australia – eLabtronics CoreChart Robotics Peer Mentoring Program:

A step forward to make Australia the land of innovations!

The program:

The University of South Australia (UniSA), in collaboration with eLabtronics, an award winning Adelaide ICT innovation company, has instituted a robotics program based strongly on the concept of peer mentoring. This UniSA-eLabtronics Robotics Peer Mentoring Program is underpinned by CoreChart, an eLabtronics technology breakthrough which gives unparalleled accessibility and years of advantage to the high school students to acquire a niche ICT / electronics skill in programming the ubiquitous microchips that are normally only taught in universities. The mentoring program is the centre piece of an initiative designed to raise awareness of engineering and science among secondary school students with a view to encouraging them to consider tertiary study in engineering and science because of the critical importance of these fields to Australia’s future as a smart nation. The program was developed and piloted in 2002 and has been expanded in 2003 with funding support of $50,000 from the South Australian government and $10,000 from organisations comprising of Codan, Holden Ltd, Playford Partnership, Tenix Defence, Entech Group of Companies, Autotherm Pty Ltd and Microchip Technology Inc (USA) and strongly supported by the Ministry of Education, the Defence Teaming Centre, the Electronics Industry Association, The Australian Manufacturing Centre of Excellence, The Australian Science and Mathematics School and the participating high schools.

Implementation:

The program is designed to engender in school pupils enthusiasm for science and technology, so as to motivate them to consider study paths into engineering and science. This is achieved by means of hands on projects which involve constructing and programming intelligent mobile robots under the enthusiastic guidance of university students who provide “peer mentoring”. At present, more than 20 engineering students, who are put through a two-week intensive training program at eLabtronics with support from UniSA staff, act as mentors for both secondary school students and their science and technology teachers. Typically students and staff spend two hours per fortnight over 10 weeks at school working on a curriculum, designed collaboratively by UniSA and eLabtronics.

Participation:

There are currently 220 students from 14 Schools participating in the program. This includes 6 Schools in the northern region of Adelaide, which has one of the lowest tertiary participation rates in Australia. This region is one of significant social and economic disadvantage but it has many opportunities within a developing electronics industry. Other Schools include vocational and adult re-entry colleges along with a number of the highly regarded science schools in Adelaide. One country School is participating by bringing their students to the University campus on a fortnightly basis. Typically students are in years 9-10, although it is planned to extend the participation to students in earlier years.

Observations:

Both tutors and teachers report significant engagement by students in the program. The hands-on approach to learning leading edge technologies is very popular. A significant outcome of the Mentoring Program is the potential to develop a first class INNOVATION SKILL BASE. This is typified by the students of Nuirooptpa High School. They are keen to apply their newly acquired microchip knowledge to control applications in their award winning Wine Making and Burramundi Fish Breeding programs. Students are developing skills in an area where significant career opportunities exist. The use of university students as tutors / peer-mentors is proving to be very successful. The opportunity to interact with university students provides secondary students with information about what courses are available in the area and what it is like to be a university student. For students from underprivileged areas, where there are not many role models of people who have attended a tertiary institution, this is a particularly important aspect of the program. There is an increased in interest to enrol in UniSA’s Electronics Engineering Courses. Links with employers and a range of tertiary providers (Universities and TAFEs) are being provided to illustrate the connection between the program and a range of career opportunities in engineering, science and technology. The board of Holden saw great values in the innovative Mentoring Program and approved a ‘microchip controlled display’ project for a team of University Mentor and High School students for 2004. The program is also highly appreciated by teachers as a unique and effective form of in-class professional development. The program has proven to be an effective platform to forge partnerships amongst industry, educators, governments and the community.

Awards:

The significance of this SA initiative is recognised by the winning of the prestigious Institution of Engineers IEAust National Engineering Excellence Award, the AustIndustry Innovation Award for 2003. The award is judged against criteria that measure the project’s contribution to the national economy; the number of personnel engaged in research and development; the impact the project will have on the quality of life of the relevant communities; and the extent to which the project represents world’s best practice in engineering.

The South Australian Office of Economic Development in collaboration with the Mentoring Project Team is in discussion with three Government Ministries: Industry, Education and Employment to prepare a Business Plan to expand and to sustain the project in 2004 and beyond.

eLabtronics and UniSA has received $20,000 from the World Congress on IT Legacy Grant Scheme to develop CoreChart curriculum resources which meet the South Australian Curriculum and Standards Accountability SACSA Framework for 2004. These awards and recognitions have given credence to stakeholders from industry, education, government and community that we can all work together to achieve South Australia’s and Australia’s vision of a world class Knowledge Based Economy. The fact that this program was presented to the Prime Minister’s Science, Engineering and Innovation Council (PMSEIC), the Federal Education and Science Ministers in Canberra demonstrates the program is clearly gaining high-level interest and support.

Value proposition:

The program, which is portable and replicable across Australia, has opened up opportunities with wide impact on Australia’s future.  These include:

1.      Increased retention rates of students in schools.

2.      Increased industrial work placements for high school and university students.

3.      Increased traineeships and graduate employment opportunities.

4.      Development of a sustainable world class Australian ICT INNOVATION SKILL BASE.

5.      Export niche educational resources and innovative products based on Australian courseware, hardware and software (as in the case of CoreChart).

6.      Investment attractions and the development of strategic alliances with hi-tech companies such as Microchip Technology Inc (USA). Our unique CoreChart Robotic University High School Mentoring Program is already increasing the market presence of their microchips.

Lessons learnt:

Cost is an issue for a number of schools, especially in underprivileged regions, which struggle to procure the hardware and software, essential to the success of the program, heavily relying on the generosity of sponsors. This is a weakness, threatening the expansion of the program. In a number of schools the program is being used as part of the formal curriculum. Teachers have suggested that formal accreditation be sought for aspects of the curriculum. It is suggested to develop ways in which the program content can be related to areas of science and mathematics curricula. Most participating high schools are interested in pursuing further applications of the microchip technology relating to their particular area of interest such as agriculture, manufacturing, food technology and telecommunication. Thus there is a need for enlightened direction and assistance providing opportunities for students to be entrepreneurial and creative problem solvers.

By expanding and sustaining the University High School Mentoring program, all our children will be able to participate in this unique opportunity to build a world-class electronics and ICT innovation skill base for Australia.

Please visit the website: www.elabtronics.com for further details about the innovative University High School Robotic Mentoring Program.