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During this past year's ITEEA conference in Kansas City, Mr. Cunha met with leaders from the Himalayan WhiteHouse International World School in Kathmandu, Nepal. The school houses the only STEM program in the nation. After several conversations, Mr. and Mrs. Cunha were invited to come to the school during the summer and share some activities with the juniors and seniors in the program.
We met with the STEM instructor, Gagan Acharya; a young, energetic man who is also working on an engineering degree part time, and developed some activities. We first taught the students about the importance of teaming and the Engineering Design Process. They were inquisitive, excited, and motivated to learn.
In 2015, the nation of Nepal was struck by a devastating earthquake of magnitude 7.8. EVERYONE in the country was effected by it. There are still buildings and ancient structures being repaired. There is much research going into why some structures stood while others fell. Earthquakes WILL continue to happen. How can they prepare for them?
Students were given a challenge to use the Engineering Design process to design and build a structure to support their notebook using one sheet of paper.
In 2020, NASA will send another rover to Mars. One of the objectives is to collect samples from different locations on the planet's surface and place them in a chosen location for a future retrieval mission. Students learned how to program Ozobots and have to drive autonomously from one location to another.
Both schools look forward to collaborating on projects this coming year. Mr. Acharya has already started incorporating the Engineering Design Process in his classes and doing some engineering activities. By working together and sharing ideas, our experiences will be enriched and strengthened.
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