01/12/2022

With an addition robot, the Girls' Olympics team wins the Hackathon.

Robotics classes from the IMPA's "Olympic Girls" program helped a group of students from the Carmela Dutra Institute of Education, a technical school in Rio de Janeiro focused on teacher training, to build Bimô. This robot, using playful and creative resources, helps children learn the concepts of addition. Their creativity earned them victory in the "Meninas Normalistas" Hackathon, promoted by the Museum of Science and Life in Duque de Caxias.

“ We were really excited about the Hackathon. We didn't know there were competitions for teacher training colleges; it was new to us. It was a challenge and a unique and fun experience. We had to do almost everything on the spot,” said student Thuany Vitória.

At Carmela Dutra, she participates in classes from the Girls in the Olympics program – which seeks to encourage greater participation of girls in mathematics activities and olympiads, in an attempt to reduce barriers to access for women to scientific and technological activities.

In addition to Thuany, four other students from the institution – Djiane Martins, Giulia Olivio, Menara Genésio and Rachel Cristine – all from the Girls in the Olympics program, formed the winning team of the Hackathon, a challenge focused on the development of innovation and technology projects.

“The Girls' Olympics made me see mathematics in a different way, it deconstructed everything I thought before about the subject, which was something super difficult, a monster with seven heads. I learned to like mathematics and to admire women engineers, mathematicians and physicists who were part of history,” said Thuany.

With support from IMPA and the Rio de Janeiro Research Support Foundation (Faperj), the Olympic Girls program funds scholarships for 30 female students, aged 14 to 17, from public schools in the state. However, the classes and activities of the initiative reach a larger number of teenagers who end up joining the study group. The program benefits 10 educational institutions.

Fabiana Rodrigues, a teacher at the Carmela Dutra Institute of Education, located in Madureira, says that, through the IMPA project, students have innovative classes, including robotics, and are encouraged to participate in scientific outreach events in mathematics and olympiads.

“The students realized that girls can do and dream about whatever they want. They managed to step out of their comfort zone and build a robot on their own, focused on teaching mathematics in a playful, creative, and fun way,” she stated.

The Science and Life Museum challenge was aimed at high school students from public and private teacher training schools located in the capital and metropolitan region of Rio de Janeiro. The competition consisted of two days of work, with workshops, lectures, and a practical component. The evaluation was based on the lesson plan, presentation, video, and project development.

Letícia Rangel, coordinator of the Girls' Olympics program, explains that the project aims to increase the participation of women in STEM fields (science, engineering, and mathematics). "The program promotes opportunities for students to present their projects at events and festivals. This gives them experience and confidence to participate in competitions like the Hackathon," she said.

Thuany is proof that the initiative is achieving its results: "Nowadays I'm thinking about studying naval engineering, something I would never have considered before."