All eyes on Ghana as OLAG SHS enters World Robotics Olympiad in Germany

Ghana is eyeing trophies in the World Robotics Olympiad in Dortmund Germany as students from Our Lady of Grace Senior High School, book a deserving place to slug it out in the well-acclaimed international contest of technological brains.

From their School’s Robotics lab at Mampongteng in the Ashanti Region, it has been months of intense work; programming; simulation exercises; calculations, and application of scientific wit to problem-solving.

The 2021 title holders for the National Robotics Inspired Science Education Competition will be competing with teams from across the world as they showcase their care and sports robots built and programmed all by themselves.

The first team on RoboMission is developing a care robot designed to autonomously perform tasks including laundry, entertainment and delivery of basic needs for patients in a medical ward.

A team lead Omrinah Sampabire told Ultimate News, the team is poised to make Ghana proud as they challenge heights to deploy robotics to solve complex societal challenges.

“One thing that drew me to robotics is that they are a team of problem solvers. We identify problems, sit down to do critical research and design solutions. How can I live in a society with problems and not be able to solve them?” she asked.

The second team RoboSport is programming robots with computer vision to play a game of tennis on a board.

Through lenses, sensors and color codes, this robot will be competing with opposing robots from other competing countries.

A unique feature of this cohort is; out of the team of nine building the robots; six of them are females and three are from the general arts class.

Amy Ruth Doe Addo was excited about the challenges that had pushed the team to stretch their imagination to figure out the best codes to bring the Robot to scratch.

“Gender should be put aside because it only depends on your ability to apply what has been taught you in Robotics. You are a human being aside you being a girl or a boy. What makes you stand out is the fact that you are able to apply it in ways that no one else can,” Amy exuded.

A coach on the project Dr Kwame Oteng Gyasi is positive learning fine technical skills and booking a slot in Germany to represent Ghana is an impressive feat that should guarantee bright prospects for the students.

“If you see their programming skills, the strategy they are using to find the solutions to the challenges they face… If they get the chance to enter the university to offer whatever programs they are interested in and are given the opportunity to work in their fields of specialty, they will do wonders for the nation,” Dr Oteng Gyasi stated.

Our Lady of Grace Senior High School holds the bragging rights having topped the 2021 Robotics-inspired Science Education Competition with three unbeaten teams.

Head of School Rev. Father Sylvester Frimpong attributed this to a culture of encouraging holistic academic, moral, and skills training in students beyond the usual curriculum.

“We identified that Robotics teaches students to use all their skills and talents. Anybody who does Robotics is ready for the real world of academics and the real world of work and we are already happy how far they have come,” he indicated.

Founders of the school Warren and Mary Lynn Staley who continue to invest heavily in this team winning awards locally and competing internationally; were optimistic the students will make themselves and Ghana proud, as they enter the highly competitive competition of robotics on the world stage.

Mary Lynn Staley told reporter Ivan Heathcote – Fumador, “I want them to know if they bring their best, their outcome will be just fine.”

“It will be a step along the journey of learning and they should know that they have already succeeded by representing Ghana and that no disappointment should be in that package. Whatever they do, as long as they do their best, it will be a gift from Ghana to the world,” she noted.

The other members constituting the team are Immaculate Bachie; Jennifer Agbedor; Isaac Bannor; Humphrey Boahen – Ntim Oheneba; Kathy Gyesey and Rhoda Coffie.

They will be joined by two other Ghanaian teams from the Primary and Junior High Schools also poised to make the nation proud on the international stage.

Ghana’s positive showing in such international competitions was birthed by Ghanaian-born Chief Robotics Engineer with NASA Dr. Ashitey Trebi-Ollennu who founded the Ghana Robotics Academy Foundation.

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The object is to introduce young Ghanaian brains to the practicality of applying concepts in Science, Math, Engineering, and Technology to create robots that either solve societal problems or contributes to national development.