The Chair FACSA The Innovation in the Integrated Water Cycle of the Universitat Jaume I of Castelló has completed the training action for pre-university teachers within the Water Rockets initiative, which has as its main objective to motivate students in disciplines of the scientific and technological field, and has called the 1st Water Rocket Competition aimed at students of third cycle of primary, secondary and training cycles.
The competition, open to all students in the Valencian Community, will have two categories based on the educational level of the participating team. Category 1 will consist of teams from the third cycle of primary school, the first and second years of ESO (Compulsory Secondary Education), and Basic Vocational Training Level 1, while Category 2 will include teams from the third and fourth years of ESO, Basic Vocational Training Level 2, Baccalaureate, and Intermediate and Higher Vocational Training.
The winning teams' schools will receive a prize of €500 worth of computer equipment and introductory robotics materials. The first edition of the competition will take place on Thursday, May 12, 2022, at the Universitat Jaume I.
Teacher training
The first edition of the course "Water Rockets as an Educational Resource: From Scientific and Technological Motivation to Participation in a Competition," organized in conjunction with CEFIRE, took place in December 2019. "It was a resounding success," explains Raúl Martínez, course director and member of the Chair, "the teachers were enthusiastic and motivated, as were we. The competition was going to be announced shortly afterward, but then the pandemic hit and it couldn't happen." However, the teachers' interest was evident in the call for applications for the second edition of the course, which filled up on the first day of registration on the CEFIRE website.
With the participation of teachers from 12 schools in 11 municipalities across the provinces of Castellón and Valencia, the second edition of the program expanded its curriculum to a total of 20 hours, delivered over five consecutive Thursdays from January to February. New topics covered included the basic use of Arduino for integrating sensors and 3D printing for manufacturing the rocket's structural components. In the final session, held on February 10th, the teachers, who had already built their own launchers and rockets, put their newly acquired skills to the test in a mini water rocket competition.
The activities of the WATER ROCKETS program are part of the work line in secondary education of the Chair FACSA Innovation in the Integrated Water Cycle at UJI, which aims to show students a different way of doing science.
More information about the contest: https://www.catedradelagua.uji.es/evento/water-rockets-2/
