The introduction of ChatGPT and Bing by Microsoft has caused a storm in technology in recent months. It has shown a glimpse of what the future may look like. We have seen robots becoming more and more involved in our day-to-day lives, such as in restaurants, factories and the marketplace. With the goal of preparing our children for the future, Robothink is a local education centre that offers exciting robotics and coding programs where children of all ages can explore the exciting world of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).
Equal opportunity for all
THE introduction of ChatGPT and Bing by Microsoft has caused a storm in technology in recent months. The introduction has shown a glimpse of what the future may look like.
We have seen robots becoming more and more involved in our day-to-day lives. Robots are seen in a lot of places, such as restaurants, factories and the marketplace.
Robots may be practical, and the necessity to educate children and the next generation is more crucial than ever before to keep up with the trends and evolution of the world we live in today.
New Sarawak Tribune recently sat down with co-owners and directors of Robothink, Decker Chan and Delia Hoan, who both passionately run the centre that teaches robotics and coding.
IT ALL STARTED WITH AN EMAIL
Decker Chan, who specialised in electrical engineering for more than 17 years, started his career in Perth, Australia, at a consulting firm in design.
He later moved to Miri to work in the oil and gas industry in project management, which manages technologies. Later on, he started his own engineering company, which has been in operation for four years now.
According to Decker, the company specialises in digital solutions for petrochemical plants and new technology. He further explained that things can be made more efficient with technology, especially for rotating machines.
Decker revealed that Robothink began in early 2021, following an email from Shell asking him whether a corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme was available, particularly in education.
“That’s when it triggered us. Why don’t we explore something educational? Delia then looked for something related to digital solutions, and that was robotics.
“That’s how we found Robothink,” he said.
SEEING AHEAD, MAKING A CHANGE IN THE NEXT GENERATION
During the interview, Decker’s expression was filled with hope as he retold his moments of doubt and struggle. He seemed convinced that his hopes of one day realising his goal for children to learn robotics and coding were possible, which would be a remarkable feat.
Reminiscing, Decker shared the conversation he had with partner Delia: “Why don’t we give it a chance? At least we tried, and if it doesn’t work, that’s okay,” he said to her regarding the initial idea of opening a robotics centre.
“And since we run the programme, why don’t we start our own learning centre at the same time?” Decker added. “We were just brainstorming and basically sharing ideas, and Delia said, ‘Let’s just go for it.'”
Decker then did a research, “In West Malaysia, robotics centres were already active; there were five to six centres there, and we wanted to do something in East Malaysia.
“And that’s how we ended up here. There will eventually be more, because we want to start it up in Sabah too,” he shared.
He explained that the teachers in Robothink would need to understand civil, mechanical, chemical, and electrical engineering principles.
Although Robothink materials are sourced from the US, Decker and Delia both work together closely with Robothink in West Malaysia, and they explained that the programme is not the carbon copy of what it is in the US and is tailored more to the Malaysian market.
Decker pointed out that, as a centre, Robothink’s syllabus is an emphasis on robotics and coding.
“Robotics involves mechanical systems, sensors, electronics and some engineering principles. As for coding, we code for robots; we don’t code for games and animations,” he said.
Asked about the differences between Robothink and other robotics centres, Decker said that most centres cater to older kids and parents would need to buy the components. Robothink, meanwhile, caters for children ranging from the age of five all the way up to the age of 15.
He added that Robothink has a research and development centre which shows that the programme will only get better.
Delia echoed the same sentiment, and explained that she puts a high emphasis on education. Comparing current times to her youth, she said that there were not many opportunities like these back then, and even if there were, they may have only catered to international schools.
“In Singapore, this is quite common, but here in Malaysia, it is not and that is also one of the reasons why I would like to focus on this industry,” she said.
Decker and Delia are both passionate about the next generation; Decker intends to contribute to rural areas too, to ensure that children in rural areas have equal opportunity in robotics as those of urban upbringing.
“We brought Robothink to government agencies because robotics or digital solutions are the future. Everything is going digital,” Decker said.
At the same time, Decker and Delia have shared with their children and students the importance of robots, which contribute significantly to our day-to-day lives.
When Robothink first started in May 2021, the number of students was not consistent due to the pandemic, but to date, they have more than 50 students joining them.
CONFRONTING MINDSETS AND BELIEFS
Because Robothink East Malaysia is the first, there were bound to be hardships and difficulties along the way. One of them, according to Delia, was the teaching method.
“The challenge for me is the teaching method. Robothink is very different; in normal schools, you send the children to school. This is more one-on-one; the way and how we teach, as well as the children’s expectations — that is still the main challenge,” she explained.
At the same time, educating parents and sharing the importance of Robothink with them is equally challenging.
“Nowadays, things are getting more digitalised, and parents should have be a bit more open minded; but to tell you the truth, this is still a challenge,” she added.
Decker, too, explained his side of a slightly similar obstacle: finding ways and means to ensure parents understand that learning robotics and coding is essential to their child’s wellbeing.
He explained that most parents still view academics as the main priority, and while that is, of course, essential, moving with the times is equally important.
“It has to do with our thinking, related to academics. We do get a lot of inquiries about robotics. But some parents are slightly hesitant, and that is the challenge,” he said.
Delia went on to say that learning robotics and coding will not provide parents with an immediate physical result, but she explained that the positive side can be seen as children are becoming more patient, improving their critical thinking, and being able to solve problems better.
She highlighted that these are some of the things that are much more important compared to immediate academic results, and she hopes that the parents will be more willing to understand these areas better.
Nevertheless, despite the challenges, both Decker and Delia remain optimistic that robotics and coding will one day be core subjects in government schools. Both of them see light at the end of the tunnel: robotics and coding will one day be part of the school curriculum, and more students and children will be exposed to robotics and coding.
Delia firmly suggested that awareness needs to be created now, instead of two to three years down the road.
Asked about what keeps them going, Decker simply replies, “It’s the feedback we get from the students. Most of them are happy when they are able to explain mechanical systems that their parents may not understand, and that to me is joy in itself and satisfying.”
As for Delia, it’s being able to get along with different types of children, and she believes all children deserve the chance to learn about robotics and coding.
“Whether the children are slow or have a unique temperament, everyone deserves an opportunity to learn. It is important that they don’t stop learning. If they don’t give up, then why should we?”.
