‘STEAM for Social Good’ was a 10-Day IoT and App development training program + 2 day Makethon to inspire students to create apps and IoT prototypes for solving societal challenges. It took place in Amrita Vidyalayam, Edappally between Sept 3-16 for students studying in grades 6-9. 50 students from 14 schools participated in the training and Makeathon.
Three researchers of AMMACHI Labs, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Gayathri Manikutty, Sreejith Sasidharan and Pranav Prabha who have been recognized by IEEE pre-university team as IEEE STEM Ambassadors, envisaged and conducted the program. Nearly 20 IEEE student volunteers and young professionals participated in the program, taking up the responsibility of mentors and role models for the children.
“India is one of the youngest countries in the world today in terms of demographic dividend and our children and youth are tomorrow’s innovators and entrepreneurs,” says mentor Prof. Gayathri Manikutty. “STEAM is educational approach that integrates Arts into Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. Thus, STEAM promotes higher order thinking skills and student’s innovative abilities to solve real world problems with creative, practical and meaningful solutions.”
STEAM for Social Good is a IEEE TryEngineering funded program that commenced on Sept 3, 2022 in collaboration with IEEE Education Society Kerala Section, IEEE SIGHT and AMMACHI Labs, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham. The ten-day STEAM coding camp was followed by a two-day Makeathon on applying a design thinking approach towards UN Sustainable Development Goals. The coding camp happened in hybrid mode in Kochi, Kerala India with 5 days of online training and 5 days of offline training during Onam holidays. “Through this program, we wanted to empower and inspire children to become innovators and technology creators by providing experiential learning through digital tinkering and making to solve global challenges,” says Prof. Manikutty.
On September 18, 2022, the two-day day STEAM For Social Good Makethon concluded with grandeur and enthusiasm. Swami Purnamritananda Puri and Dr Vishal Marwah, Principal, Amrita Hospitals were present along with IEEE Education Society Kerala Section Chairperson Er C.M. Varughese, IEEE Kochi Sub-Section Chairperson Dr M.V. Rajesh and IEEE Education Society Kerala Section Design and Publicity lead Prof Maya Menon for the concluding ceremony. A total of 10 student teams participated in the 2 day Makeathon. 4 teams were declared as winners. The winning teams received a cash award of Rs 5000 each. This program was a huge success and has inspired many students to learn 21st century skills through experiential learning.
“We invited students from all schools in Kerala to participate in the STEAM For Social Good program. Children from as far as Kannur district came to Cochin to participate in the Makeathon. We were very happy to see the enthusiasm and interest both from the children and the parents. Through this outreach program, IEEE volunteers are empowering the next generation of technology innovators,” says Prof. Manikutty.
Learn more about the STEAM For Social Good Makethon from the IEEE Education Society, Kerala Chapter
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