More than 120 elementary, middle, and high school teams from across the region will contend in the first competition of the 2012-2013 Regional Autonomous Robotics Circuit (RARC) 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Bossier Civic Center.
RARC is a series of four competitions focused on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) that are held throughout the school year for students in grades 4-12. These competitions are sponsored by the Cyber Innovation Center’s National Integrated Cyber Education Research Center (NICERC), Bossier Parish Schools, the City of Bossier City, and Sci-Port: Louisiana’s Science Center.
The second annual RARC has experienced a dramatic increase in participating teams; the average number of participating teams at the competitions last year was 77 while 127 teams have registered for this competition. The teams will compete in challenges according to their division: elementary, middle, and high school. These dynamic challenges will range from robotic programming for optimal drag-racing speed and tractor-pulling force to the showcasing of creative display boards and oral presentations. The challenges will serve a dual purpose: introduce STEM concepts and its many applications to younger students and reinforce STEM fundamentals learned in the classroom for older students. In order to provide a context for the content, liberal arts and 21st Century Skills will be incorporated into the challenges as well.
For more information regarding the 2012-2013 RARC, please visit http://www.nicerc.org/regional-autonomous-robotics-circuit/.
