2024/04/01
TeamViewer Cyber Robotics Competition in the US comes to an end: 4,000 hours of coding, robotics and fun!
The TeamViewer Cyber Robotics Competition, powered by CoderZ, concluded on a high note in May! With over 500 participants from 38 schools across 11 states, this initiative not only introduced coding and robotics into classrooms but also sparked a passion for technology among our young learners.
Students and teachers dedicated nearly 4,000 hours to coding, embarking on a transformative learning journey. The competition, divided into three phases, was not just about winning, but about gaining knowledge of important coding concepts, improving social skills, and pushing their limits. From the training camp to the ultimate challenges, each phase was a stepping stone in their coding adventure.
Lincoln, a member of the Cosmic Codex team at Academy Da Vinci Charter School in Florida, resonated with this journey. He enjoyed learning to code, as computer science is his favorite subject, and he dreams of being a videogame designer when he grows up. However, to him, the best of the competition was being part of a team and supporting his classmates.
“My favorite part of the competition so far is helping my friends with the coding,” Lincoln mentioned. “Coding comes easy to me, so I really enjoy helping other people and telling them what they might need to do and letting them do their thing instead of fully taking over.”
TeamViewer is proud to see all the effort students and teachers put into this exciting coding adventure. We had the chance to all come together during the online Award Ceremony to recognize all teachers and participants! During the session we gave a special shout-out to the top-performing teams:
- First place: Team Onix from Livingston Elementary in Washington.
- Second place: Team Rhydon from Livingston Elementary in Washington.
- Third place: DC Super Coderz from the Discovery School at Hebron Middle in Kentucky.
Top performing teams took home an individual robotics kit, and their school received monetary support for the STEM activities. A special shout out to the outstanding winners of our special categories! Our TeamViewer colleagues in our Clearwater, Florida office voted The Pickle Gang from Pennington Middle School in Virginia for Best Team Name, while the Reach Rockets won the Best Team Spirit award.
We had the chance to ask Mr. Devin Franklin from the Discovery School at Hebron Middle, the Best Teacher Award winner, a couple of questions about their school’s experience during the competition. He said the skills kids learn go beyond computational knowledge and include soft skills important for their future.
“From the surface level, kids get an introduction to computer programming. From that side, students can think algorithmically and apply mathematical reasoning, proportionality, and geometry. We have a lot of students who are interested in doing that down the road career-wise,” Mr. Franklin said.
“Beyond that, the way the competition is structured, they have been able to work on those soft skills, those 21st-century skills that can apply to any field, like collaboration and communication with their team members and solving problems creatively.”