The playfulness and ease of learning make robotics an almost instant success for students and teachers alike. It develops a range of skills in students that can be applied to other subjects in the traditional curriculum, and it’s motivating for teachers to engage children with new and exciting tools. Although in previous years Yettel’s digital education program ProSuli offered robotics education to schools only as a complementary activity, ProSuli robotics has become one of the biggest players in Hungarian robotics competitions over the past three years. At the competition held in the of spring 2024, 46 teams (92 students and 40 accompanying teachers) from all over the country put their skills to the test.
ProSuli Robotics 2.0, taken to the next level
In addition to ProSuli’s teacher training and online safety education activities, robotics education will also play a prominent role in the current 2024/2025 school year. The previous concept of a one-time annual competition will be replaced by a complete, coordinated preparation and a regional and then national competition series spanning the entire school year.
The competition series will start with an autumn-winter application and catch-up period, during which new institutions and teams will be welcome to apply alongside existing ProSuli schools. Institutions can also get free robot kits during this period. Preparation will be supported by a free tutorial video series and a consultation opportunity. This will be followed by a series of regional qualifiers and semi-finals in the spring. The winning teams will be eligible to compete in the ProSuli Robotics National Final, scheduled for May 2025. At the final, the winning team will be awarded the 'Best of the Year' title and the opportunity to represent their school and Hungary at the prestigious Robotex International robotics competition, where they will compete on an international stage against student teams from other countries.
By further developing robotics, the program aims to make this innovative, skill-building opportunity available to as many schools and students as possible, providing students with new skills and useful technology know-how in a fun way. The autumn-winter preparation period began with a kick-off event at the Yettel House, where interested teachers started preparing for this year’s competitions. At the event, nearly 60 teachers from 46 new and experienced robotics schools were introduced to the competition concept and took part in beginner and advanced workshops to help their teams succeed.
Application for free robotics kits
ProSuli also provides tools to help institutions that do not yet have a robotics kit, giving students and teachers the opportunity to start preparing on their own. Applications for the free robotics kits are open to all public education institutions in Hungary, regardless of whether they are members of the ProSuli program at the link below.
In addition to the robotics kits, the organisers are also making an online tutorial available to all teams on the prosuli.webuni.hu website. The eight-part video tutorial introduces the basics of robotics and helps even complete beginners get started.
“Robotics education plays a key role in educating the professionals of the future, not only from an IT perspective. Through the project-based approach, students are confronted with real problems that require them to brainstorm in teams, find solutions with a project-oriented mindset, and develop, present and live the results. This kind of approach and experience is particularly valuable for children as they progress in their studies and, in the longer term, as they enter the labour market”, said Balázs Koren, Head of the ProSuli Program.
Useful links
Application for robot kits: https://forms.office.com/e/1AVQQFnLCG
Online curriculum to help preparations: https://prosuli.webuni.hu/kepzes/prosuli-robotika-lego-spike-prime-alapok
About ProSuli: https://prosuli.hu/