RoboCup Junior in the Hunter Region: Driving the Future of Robotic STEM Education

Abstract: RoboCup Junior is a project-oriented educational initiative that sponsors regional, national and international robotic events for young students in primary and secondary school. It leads children to the fundamentals of teamwork and complex problem solving through step-by-step logical thinking using computers and robots. The Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment at the University of Newcastle in Australia has hosted and organized the Hunter regional tournament since 2012. This paper presents an analysis of data collected from RoboCup Junior in the Hunter Region, New South Wales, Australia, for a period of six years 2012-2017 inclusive. Our study evaluates the effectiveness of the competition in terms of geographical spread, participation numbers, and gender balance. We also present a case study about current university students who have previously participated in RoboCup Junior.