The Robotics Club at Collingwood has been a longtime favourite, and a key player in the school’s extracurricular life. Through projects and competitions, both local and global, the club has quickly found its place in the hearts of many, with new challenges awaiting at every meeting. Inspired by its impacts, a student interview was conducted with a club participant to better understand the true experience of participating in the robotics community. The particular participant had only been in the Robotics Club for two months at the time of the interview, providing a perfect example of the immediate impacts the club can have on a student’s life. Initially, they had joined robotics for the many friends they had who were already prominent members of the club, and they assumed it would be “fun”. Little did they know that the club would soon also help them socialize with others, work collaboratively, and even find a new passion in engineering.
Though previously having their heart set on business, the Robotics Club provided the participant with stronger insights on “how things work”. Through activities like cutting, constructing, and coding, a newfound potential for engineering was found. However, better grasping these ideas also led to stumbling upon obstacles in this field. One main struggle discussed was the time and patience robotics projects require. Sometimes, “things simply do not work”, and it can be frustrating to calmly deal with such situations, especially after putting hours of thought and labour into it. Thankfully, sharpening the skills of diligence and perseverance allows for a better-suited life in general and not just in the robotics environment. So, these difficulties become the valuable practice for such crucial skills.
Additionally, during the last week of October, the club’s teams were working on a robot with a launcher of sorts to shoot disks into a basket. The objective was to get as many disks in the basket as possible to earn more points and beat other teams. On November 19, 2022, a multi-school-wide tournament is being held for this particular challenge. With anticipation, Collingwood cannot wait to see what its teams accomplish. Though, regardless of the results, the school community is proud of every contributing individual.
Evidently, from not only the interviewee at hand but also the Collingwood Robotics Club members as a whole, it is clear that the activity has many attributes beyond the mere world of coding. As directly quoted from the interview, “It’s improved my (the member’s) understanding of what it takes to be a team and how to work towards something together. It has helped teach me about the importance of getting along, team chemistry, and always being ready to contribute to the work”. It is incredible to watch the Robotics Club flourish and help every student connected to it grow, gain, and thrive.
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