Penn and Phila. plan robo-project

Pennlincs has joined an effort to bring science to adolescent schoolgirls. Getting the attention of middle school students is never an easy task, but Penn and the Philadelphia School District are hoping that robots will help get adolescent girls interested in the typically male-dominated sciences. The University announced a partnership last week with two clusters of public schools to provide machines that students can use to learn about programming and engineering, through its Institute for Research in Cognitive Science. Entitled "Agents for Change: Robotics for Girls," the project will especially focus on helping young women excel in a field that is commonly associated with men. IRCS is paying for the project mostly through a recent three-year, $875,000 grant from the National Science Foundation's Program for Gender Equity. Two school clusters in University City and North Philadelphia will build their own simple robots and work with more complex machines at Penn under the direction of the Institute's Pennlincs program, a 10-year-old initiative that has helped facilitate the study of science and technology in area schools. Together with matching funds from the Institute and participating cluster boards, more than $1 million will be available to help students gain and improve their science skills. According to Pennlincs Director Chris Massey, young women and minorities often give up their interest in science and math because of a lack of role models and mentors. Providing mentors will be one of the goals of the program, she said. "The large majority of Philadelphia public school students and students elsewhere are at risk of being locked out of education and career paths related to science, math and technology," Massey said. "This affects their career opportunities, since these are projected to be among the fast-growing and highest-paying segments of the economy." Massey said that the program will also provide an opportunity for the University to not only do research on the educational materials, but also gain some insight into why women are under-represented in the fields of science, math and technology. Using hands-on learning methods to entice students into developing their burgeoning familiarity with science, Pennlincs will move away from the traditional teaching methods of lectures and textbooks. Students will build elementary robots by learning the algorithms for programming and constructing the circuits and sensors themselves. They will also have the opportunity to work with the more advanced robots being operated at the University's noted General Robotics, Automation, Sensing and Reception Lab. "We want students to understand, design and produce 'smart' technology -- not just consume it," Massey said. The project will also help encourage the formation of extracurricular clubs and activities to supplement the instruction the students will receive in school. With the Philadelphia school system under attack for the low math and science standardized test scores of its students, organizers of the program hope the program's innovative and technological approach will help alleviate some of the system's woes. "This is part of some of the most unique things that Penn does, which is the service-learning, academic collaboration with the community," Penn Vice President for Government, Community and Public Affairs Carol Scheman said. "I know that we are the nation's leaders in this sort of program." According to Penn Director of Community Relations Glenn Bryan, the sizable grant is a great acknowledgment for the Pennlincs program. "The good work of the lincs program has been rewarded by the NSF," Bryan said.

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