NASA STEM: Exploring Robotics for K-12 Learners (Part 1)
Tuesday 05/17/2022
5:00 pm ET
FREE 1-hour Webinar
Educators in Grades K-12
 

The NASA Educator Professional Development Collaborative at
Texas State University is providing a special 1 hour webinar.

NASA STEM: Robotics for K-12 Learners

NASA employees will describe how robots are preparing the way for humans to live and work on the Moon and on Mars someday.  They will also explain the importance of introducing students to robotics and engineering at a young age to build up and reinforce a strong STEM pipeline.  And they will also demonstrate several NASA engineering activities and resources that you can utilize in your STEM classrooms.

This is a 3 part NASA seminar series designed specifically for educators and administrators.  Confirmed speakers include Kurt Leucht, NASA Software Engineer & Roboticist, along with Dr. Samuel Garcia, NASA STEM Education Specialist. 

 

This first webinar, NASA STEM: Robotics for K-12 Learners (Part 1), introduces the audience to robotics, gives examples in everyday life, gives a history of robotic exploration of the Moon and Mars, and describes NASA’s future plans for robotic and human exploration of both the Moon and Mars. 

 

NASA STEM: Robotics for K-12 Learners (Part 2) (TBA),  introduces the audience to engineering in a way that’s not elitist or scary, describes how students perform engineering all the time, and proposes that we encourage students to think and act with an engineering mindset every single day.

NASA STEM: Robotics for K-12 Learners (Part 3) (TBA) introduces the audience to several NASA engineering and robotics activities and related resources to engage students at home or in the classroom.

The NASA STEM: Robotics for K-12 Learners webinar series was inspired by NASA's ROBOTIC MINING COMPETITION (RMC) LUNABOTICS Challenge. RMC is an Artemis Student Challenge designed to train university students in the methods of NASA systems engineering while designing, building and operating an exciting lunar excavator prototype. To learn more about RMC, please click here

 

Kurt used to be quiet and shy as a child. But he found his voice along with his passion while working in the NASA Swamp Works lab on software for robots and other systems that could someday help us live off the land on Mars during manned exploration missions. He started at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center 30 years ago as a young college intern and then graduated to electronics failure analysis investigator. Then he worked as a software developer and tester for several command and control systems and advisory systems. Now he performs exploration research and technology development for NASA. That’s tech-speak for preparing the way for humans to live on Mars!
 

Dr. Samuel García Jr. serves as a NASA Educator Professional Development Specialist, Assistant Professor of Practice for the LBJ Institute for Education and Research. Dr. García helps facilitate professional development to both formal and informal STEM educators utilizing NASA resources with a specific focus on Culturally Responsive Pedagogy. He also works with faculty serving in Minority Serving Institutions in developing STEM educational tools and resources for teachers to implement in their classrooms. Dr. García’s research agenda is geared towards community and educational change by creating healthy, equitable, and culturally responsive learning environments for traditionally underserved populations. Dr. García. earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Texas Río Grande Valley, formerly University of Texas Pan American and holds a doctorate degree in School Improvement from Texas State University.