Robotics
Technology of the Future
Robotics is a cocurricular activity available to students from Years 5–12. All students are catered for, from beginners to students aiming to compete at an international level. In the Robotics program, our students are taught the skills needed to take part in a range of FIRST Challenges, RoboCup Competitions and more. In all pursuits, students are given a clear goal to work towards whilst also being encouraged to discover a broad range of ways to achieve a solution.
Something for Everyone
There are many varied opportunities for our students to compete and take part in projects and challenges. For example, students who participate in RoboCup can compete in either Soccer, Rescue, Dance or Rescue Maze Competitions—these competitions take place at regional, state and national levels. Our RoboCup students can plan, code and build their own robots, electronic devices and machines. They also enjoy Sumo Robot competitions, which involve two robots attempting to muscle each other out of the ring!
At St Peters, we value the input of all students. To encourage and promote females in the STEAM industries, we introduced specific Robotics opportunities for girls in 2021. The College entered three teams in the 2021 TechGirls Competition, with great outcomes for all involved. eSports was also incorporated into the Robotics portfolio in 2021. The program was introduced to allow our Junior High and Senior School to develop positive gaming habits and an awareness of digital wellbeing, while providing a platform for students to pursue their passion for gaming. eSports is a constructive pursuit that hones cognitive skills, team building, communication and sportsperson-ship through collaborative Video Games.
Finally, for our more advanced and experienced students there are the FIRST Challenges. These Robotics competitions use larger and more custom-made metal robots. Students use complex sensors, programming and have a detailed journal process to complete.
Student success
Robotics has been a very successful cocurricular activity at St Peters. In 2016, the College gained first place at the FIRST Tech Challenge's Asia Pacific Competition and the National Competition (held at Macquarie University). Our students also won the Brisbane RoboCup Regional Competitions for Primary and Secondary Rescue Competitions and finished a creditable fifth place at the RoboCup International Competition (held in Leipzig in Germany).
Our 2017, 2018 and 2019 Robotics students also took on the international stage and achieved great things—from the FIRST Global Robotics Competition in Washington DC, to the World Robot Summit in Tokyo; the FIRST Global Robotics Challenge in Mexico and the Robotics Olympics in Dubai. In all of these instances, our students have displayed incredible initiative, technical thinking and teamwork.
The St Peters Robotics students work, quite frequently, with the Robotics students from Grace Lutheran College and Brisbane Grammar School. The first joining of these groups was in 2017, when the students represented Australia at the inaugural FIRST Global Robotics Challenge held in Washington DC. Team Australia were awarded the Silver medal for the Dr Mae Jemison Award for Global Unity.
In 2021, our senior TechGirls team were Queensland Runners Up. The competition saw them working with industry mentor, Dr Urooj R. Khan from La Trobe University, and, in addition to making the state finals, they also received an Excellence Award for the app they designed to teach AUSLAN to young people.
Robotics Support Group
Robotics at St Peters is supported by the Robotics Support Group. The Group provide fundraising opportunities, classroom support, professional assistance and industry advice, all of which have allowed Robotics to grow within the College. We are extremely thankful for the Robotics Support Group—because of them, any interested student has been granted the opportunity to learn valuable skills.
Robotics Information Flyer
