8. Technical basic and further training and corporate educational responsibility 8.4 Bionics and STEM offerings for secondary education As part of our corporate educational responsibility (CER), our goal is to spark children and young people’s enthusiasm for science and technology (STEM). This creates the basis for technological excellence at a young age. Bionics arouses curiosity and interest – that is the motor for learning. That is why Festo Didactic has had the ‘Bionics4Education’ STEM education concept since 2019. It includes numerous initiatives to teach children and young people about STEM topics. Here are some examples: • Hector Kinderakademie (Germany): At the Hector Kinderakademie in Esslingen, 18 children aged between nine and ten were introduced to the bionics training kits. The children especially had fun learning more about the elephant, the chameleon and the fish. • Fin Ray® effect VDI online workshop (Germany): The tail fins of bony fish do not bend away from the application of pressure force, but instead bend in the direction of the pressure force. This effect is called the Fin Ray® effect. As part of an online workshop at the VDI (Württembergischer Ingenieurverein – Württemberg association of engineers), five children learned about and made bionic fish-fin pliers. • Kreismedienzentrum (Germany): Festo Didactic trained eight teachers on the Bionics Kit at the Kreismedienzentrum (district media centre) in Esslingen. They can only optimally pass on their knowledge to their pupils if the teachers are well informed. • Teacher training (Germany): Festo Didactic held teacher training and an exhibition at Azubicon and the WorldSkills Germany championships. Six teachers learned about the Bionics4Education offers as part of the knowledge workshop and were able to experiment with them. • Sheltered workshop (Germany): A workshop with the Bionic Flower was held at the sheltered workshop in Frickenhausen. The seven participants were very impressed by it. • Smart Maker Initiative Delft (Netherlands): Festo ran an afternoon programme together with the Stanislas Krakeelpolderweg school. The school’s aim was to explore different challenges in the field of technology together with companies. Together with Festo, the pupils were able to discover how diverse the technology topics are. • Bionicum Nuremberg – open day (Germany): Festo Didactic was active at the event Türen auf mit der Maus (open doors with the mouse). A total of 80 children between the ages of eight and 12 took part in the event. They could get enthusiastic about the topic of bionics and learn what we can learn from robots based on elephants, chameleons and fish. • Seminar course (Germany): At the new Gymnasium Leibniz Stuttgart (cooperation school), a weekly club is offered focusing on career orientation. The collaboration is entitled Bionik, Informatik und Robotik – ein spielerischer Zugang zur Wirtschaft 4.0 (bionics, computer science and robotics – a playful approach to Economy 4.0) and is meant to give the pupils an action- and production-oriented approach to future-proof skills. • LehrForum Bionik (Germany): The LehrForum Bionik (bionics teaching forum) is aimed at teachers in the STEM field. The focus was on ideas and teaching concepts for the knowledge transfer of bionics content in the classroom and at extracurricular places for learning. Festo Didactic provided 40 participants with an exciting insight into how to plan lessons that get children and young people enthusiastic about scientific and technical topics. • Learning Center Mason (Ohio, USA): Festo Didactic offered training courses on the topic of bionics. So far, a total of 30 pupils have experimented with the Bionics Kit. In addition to the interdisciplinary topic of bionics, the focus of the courses was mechatronics. The courses show high school pupils how they can develop professionally in the field of engineering. • Think Bionics Camps at the Carson City Library (Nevada, USA): Here, middle-school pupils were able to attend the three-day Think Bionics Camps at the public library. They have been being organised by the library during school breaks and on Saturdays since March 2021. Bionics Kits come into action together with accompanying course materials for an interactive and hands-on learning experience. • Knowledge Factory (Germany): Festo Didactic is also a member of the Wissensfabrik, which is a strong network in the German economy. A total of more than 130 companies and business- related foundations are involved in educational institutions to promote children and young people. As a result of its membership, Festo Didactic has 14 active educational partnerships with KiTec (Kinder entdecken Technik – children discover technology), and reached a good 140 teachers as a result. 8. Technical basic and further training and corporate educational responsibility You will find further information and teaching materials on all aspects of bionics at www.bionics4education.com. 74 75 Festo SE & Co. KG Sustainability Report 2021 Festo SE & Co. KG Sustainability Report 2021
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