Tagisang Robotics waves banner of women on its second run, reveals a Pinoy Fiesta-themed game map

Girls and their limitless potential are once again celebrated during the launch of the 2024-2025 cycle of Tagisang Robotics Girls and Gears – the first and only all-female robotics competition in the country.

This year’s run kicked off in celebration of the International Day of the Girl Child – a key global moment where people come together to recognize and advocate for gender equality and the universality of women’s and girls’ rights.

As part of the competition’s initial stage, female students from 24 science and technology-oriented junior high schools in the country underwent the Mobot Interfacing using the Arduino Microcontroller Training. This five-day technical training course aimed to prepare the school teams for the competition stage.

The training sessions focused on learning the basics about robotics technologies. They covered topics, such as Basic C Programming and Electronics, Introduction to Arduino and Microcontrollers, Breadboard Prototyping and Troubleshooting, Wireless Communication, and Kit-of-Parts (KOP) building. The training modules were facilitated by lecturers from ThinkLab.

Here are the 24 invited school-teams that will compete for the 2024-2025 cycle of TR Girls & Gears:

1. Bangkal High School
2. Caloocan National Science and Technology High School
3. Las Piñas National High School
4. Lydia D. Villangca Trade School
5. Makati Science High School
6. Malabon City Mathematics and Science High School
7. Marcelo H. del Pilar National High School
8. Marikina Science High School
9. Maronquillo National High School
10. Muntinlupa Science High School
11. Parañaque Science High School
12. Pasay City West High School
13. Pasig City Science High School
14. Pitogo High School
15. Quezon City High School
16. Rizal High School
17. Rizal National Science High School
18. San Francisco High School
19. San Joaquin-Kalawaan High School
20. San Juan City Science High School
21. Senator Renato “Compañero” Cayetano Memorial Science and Technology High School
22. Taguig Science High School
23. Tondo High School
24. Valenzuela City School of Mathematics and Science

To inspire the TagRobo girls, Ms. Bern Irish Arguelles, Science Research Specialist II of DOST-SEI and a former DOST scholar, provided an overview of DOST publication “Women in Science.” The said publication championed women’s involvement in the S&T workforce and paved the way for this TR Girls and Gears.

Prior to the training proper, the girls also had the opportunity to explore the exciting fields of STEM through the #PUSH4Science: Maging DOST Scholar Ka! Campaign. They were introduced to “Finding North in STEM: A Career Guidebook for Students,” a handy reference to usher students towards a fulfilling and an exciting career in STEM. Carefully designed to promote STEM education, this guidebook highlights STEM courses that are covered by the DOST-SEI scholarship programs for both the undergraduate and graduate levels.

The TagRobo girls also underwent a workshop on Gender Equality and Women Empowerment. This workshop sought to inspire them to continue enhancing their potential and advocating for women’s rightful place in society. It was facilitated by Philippine Commission on Women’s (PCW) Gender and Development (GAD) Resource Pool member Ms. Marita Pimentel.

Present during the opening of this year’s season of TR Girls and Gears were the members of the board of judges – Engr. Edison Roxas of the University of Santo Tomas Department of Electronics Engineering and Research Center for the Natural and Applied Sciences; Engr. Percival Magpantay of the University of the Philippines Diliman Electrical and Electronics Engineering Institute; and Engr. Carlos Matti Oppus of the Ateneo de Manila University School of Science and Engineering.

The five-day training concluded with a thrilling game reveal. Carrying TR’s original battle cry “Pagyabong ng Kalinangan at Pagkakaisa sa Gitna ng Pakikipagtunggali,” this year’s cycle champions learning, advocacy, and camaraderie over competitive rivalry and incorporates the theme of Pinoy Fiesta. It gets inspiration from the following pinoy games: Pukpok Palayok, Pabitin, and Palo Sebo, while revolving on the concept of the Filipino favorite game – basketball.

TR’s Pinoy Fiesta will be a 3-on-3, alliance vs alliance, varsity game in which participants will be able to team-up and face other school-teams. It will have two phases – the Seed Rounds and the Playoffs & Championship. There will be 6 games for the Seed Rounds and 7 games for the Playoffs and Championship.

The TagRobo girls are set to battle it out for the actual competition stage in March 2025.