For High Schools and Middle Schools

Steven J. Maiersjmaier@nwosu.edu

AAPT Summer MeetingAnn Arbor, MI 2009

Robotics

6 Weeks, 3 Minutesand Every Year is Different• On “KickOff,” teams are provided free of charge– Game Rules and schematics– Returnable Kit

• R/C equipment, BRAIN controller, batteries, chargers, etc.

– Consumable Kit• Stock metal, wood, hardware, wire, etc.

– Workshop Kit (optional; varies per hub)• Soldering iron, robot building books, tools

Kit Materials

“Mall” Day

• 4 – 5 weeks following KickOff, student teams can practice on the game field– At a nearby mall or other site– Teams competing for the BEST Award complete

additional components of competition• Engineering notebook, table display

Game Day• Three minute rounds• 8-matches• Round robin format• Oral presentations• Winning teams at local hubs advance to regional competition

– Texas BEST (Dallas, TX)– South’s BEST (Auburn, AL)– Frontier Trails BEST (Ft. Smith, AR)

• Local hubs usually provide teams a travel stipend (anywhere from $200 - $2,000 per team)

The BEST “Catch”• Only students do the work

– No 2nd or 3rd party fabrication– Mentors help students learn how to

fabricate and work with raw materials• All teams work with the same constraints

– Same rules– Same bill of materials– Only 6 weeks

• Teachers are “coaches” facilitating team meetings– Teams set goals and the teacher

guides/provides resources as needed– Teams may have mentors from the area to

help the coaches• BEST is to remain free for its participants

$$$

• BEST Robotics Inc. is a grass roots volunteer-based non-profit organization

• Local hubs raise funds annually to host competition and materials costs– New hub ~$24,000– Established hub ~$12,000

• Teams, students, teachers, parents, districts only pay travel and ancillary expenses – t-shirts, buttons, giveaways, etc.

Scale of BEST

• Over 30 local hubs– 8 to 30+ teams per hub– 5 to 30+ students per team

• 3 regional hubs (no national)

Opportunities• Service Learning

– Currently pursuing a 3000-level course for pre-service science teachers and STEM majors

• Outreach– May be part of institution’s mission . . .– Accessibility to applied physics/engineering courses

• Research– BEST is a lot of work, a lot of fun, but no published

research has yet to confirm its effectiveness as purported by its volunteers . . .

• Recruiting– Students (in higher ed)– Students (this might be the enthusiastic atmosphere

for your science clubs you’ve been looking for!)– Area STEM teachers

Thank You!• Questions?

• Contact me! Whether you are interested in forming a team, a new hub, or setting up a study of BEST . . .– sjmaier@nwosu.edu– www.nwosu.edu/BEST

• BRI’s main page– www.bestinc.org