Robotics Championship in Chișinău: 250 students test their ingenuity
A total of 250 technology-savvy students tested their creativity and skills in the "FIRST Tech Challenge" championship. The participants built and programmed robots that could sort and propel balls. Organized into teams, these teenagers not only designed the robots but also managed budgets, sought sponsorships, and divided responsibilities, much like in a startup environment.
The “IaloTech” team hails from Ialoveni. The students of “Petre Ștefănucă” Lyceum received sponsorship of 16,000 lei from Ialoveni City Hall and a local internet service provider. Without this funding, the construction of their robot would not have been even half possible, the teenagers reported.
“We worked for about two months. It took us a long time to print the parts. In the last few weeks, we gathered every day and stayed late at school to finish the robot. It is programmed to pick up balls, sort them by color (green and purple), and then shoot them in order to maximize our points,” explained Dumitru Luca, a student.
Meanwhile, six students from the lyceum in Stăuceni managed to build a robot in just three weeks.
"We have robotics clubs that we attend several times a week, but with this competition approaching, we've had to meet every day. The course was quite challenging, and we realized that creating the robot was not as simple as we had initially thought," said student Anastasia Pîrliu.
Vitalie Chihai, 16, from the city of Cahul, has been taking robotics courses for two years and, along with his classmates, entered the competition.
"The process of creating the robot was quite difficult. For the first time, we designed a robot that was not basic, one that we didn't build from a starter kit. We tried to create everything from scratch ourselves. Because of this, it was a bit challenging, but, overall, everything went well, and we are ready to win this competition," said Vitalie Chihai.
The FIRST Tech Challenge competition provides participants with practical experience in a startup-like environment. In this setting, they must identify solutions, manage resources, and collaborate effectively to achieve their goals. The organizers emphasize that this experience helps teenagers develop critical thinking and leadership skills.
“The competition is judged by experts from the Republic of Moldova and Romania, with the main referee coming from the United States. Teams of up to 15 members must work together to build a robot and organize events that promote STEAM education—science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics,” said Liliana Beleac, the coordinator of the “Class of the Future” program.
The winning teams will represent the Republic of Moldova at international robotics competitions, including European-level events in the Netherlands and global competitions in the United States.
FIRST Tech Challenge Moldova is part of the National Educational Robotics Program and is organized under the auspices of the Ministry of Education and Research of the Republic of Moldova, in partnership with the National Agency for Curriculum and Evaluation.
