Hochschule Karlsruhe Hochschule Karlsruhe - University of Applied Sciences
Hochschule Karlsruhe Hochschule Karlsruhe - University of Applied Sciences
[Translate to English:] CfC-Logo

Komm mach MINT

"Komm mach MINT" is a national pact founded in 2008 on the initiative of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research with the aim of changing the image of STEM professions in society and getting more women interested in scientific and technical courses of study, as well as attracting female university graduates to careers in business and science.
In November 2012, Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences became a partner in the pact and is also striving to increase the proportion of female students in STEM subjects.

Student numbers in MINT subjects

Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences has long been very active in getting female students interested in MINT courses at the university. The proportion of female students has increased continuously by more than 7% since the pact was founded in 2008 and (as of 2020) stands at just under 28%. All degree programmes at Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences can be assigned to the MINT sector. The MINT data tool shows Germany-wide student numbers in MINT subjects since 1975.

The information portal

By way of example, here are a few areas from the information portal of www.komm-mach-mint.de :

Roberta®

Roberta® (https://roberta-home.de ) uses the fascination of robots to teach pupils science, technology and computer science in an exciting and practical way, offering a playful approach to computer science. The didactic Roberta® concept with extensive teaching and learning materials was developed by the Fraunhofer Institute for Intelligent Analysis and Information Systems (IAIS) (https://www.iais.fraunhofer.de/ ) with financial support from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). More than 20 RobertaRegioCentres support the training of teachers to become Roberta Teachers for schools and universities, through which about 20,000 children and young people come into contact with robot programming every year.

Girls conquer robots

The girls' fascinated faces show that programming can be fun. They have built a robot and taught it (or her?) to dance. The material for building the robots is provided by the Lego Mindstorm construction kits. A graphic programming language lets the robots walk, see, feel and hear in a short time. This allows them to move, recognise obstacles and react to sounds.

Course content

In half-day courses, girls between the ages of 10 and 16 learn how to teach robots to dance. They have to understand how a programme is structured, what elements there are to control the robots, when to use a loop and how to process input values. At the end of the course, they have made their first entry into computer science.

Who can book a Roberta® course?

You can book a Roberta® course for a group of up to 10 girls from grade 4. Gladly also accompanied by a teacher. Previous knowledge is not necessary

Roberta® courses in 2021 (planned)
  • 23.6.2021 BeoNetzwerk - at HKA
  • 25.8.2021 Bruchsal Children's Summer Academy (BruKiSa) - in Bruchsal
  • 26.8.2021 Ettlingen Children's Summer Academy (EKSA) - in Ettlingen
Main characteristics of Roberta® courses
  • A Gender-appropriate approach.
  • Course content that appeals especially to girls,
  • Gender-sensitivity of Roberta instructors to encourage a scientific and technical interest of both genders.
  • Roberta® courses are aimed at girls and boys (10 years and older).
  • At least 50% of the participants in Roberta® courses should be girls.
  • Roberta® teachers are sensitive to their own gender-specific behaviour.
  • Roberta® teachers are sensitive to different learning styles of girls and boys.
  • The tasks are integrated into topics that are interesting for girls and boys.

In our Roberta courses, LEGO Mindstorm construction kits are used. These provide easy access to the development of small, handy robots and thus offer a wide range of applications. Programming with the graphical environment requires no prior knowledge. A lot of feedback confirms that the course participants have a lot of fun building and programming the Robertas.

More about Roberta®

The Roberta® project at Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences is financially supported by the "Verbund der Stifter".

Links:
Roberta® Homepage: www.roberta-home.de
Fraunhofer IAIS: www.iais.fraunhofer.de/roberta.html
Association of Founders:
Download: Roberta flyer (PDF document)

Previous Roberta® courses

Previous courses:

  • Girls´Day 2012 - 2019
  • Probestudium der HsKA 2012, 2013, 2015 - 2017
  • Bruchsaler-Kinder-Sommerakademie 2016 - 2019
  • St. Dominikus Gymnasiums 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017
  • BeoNetzwerk,Stadtjugendausschuss e.V. Karlsruhe 2015, 2017, 2018
  • Wissenschaftsfestival 2013

Roberta® at the HKA

Since 2012, Prof'in Dr. Cosima Schmauch and Dipl.-Inform. (FH) Helga Gabler conducted Roberta® workshops for the Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences entitled "My robot learns to dance" or "Robots can dance too".
The Roberta® project at Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences was initiated by Prof'in Dr. Cosima Schmauch, then Equal Opportunities Officer and Professor in the Business Informatics Department, with the aim of awakening an interest in informatics among female students, which is why the courses are offered under the umbrella of both the Faculty of Informatics and Business Informatics and Equal Opportunities.
The Roberta® project at Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences is co-financed by the Association of Donors. Key features of Roberta® courses are:

  • A gender-appropriate design.
  • Course content that appeals especially to girls.
  • Gender sensitivity of Roberta instructors to encourage a scientific and technical interest of both genders.
  • Roberta® courses are aimed at girls and boys (10 years and older).
  • At least 50% of the participants in Roberta® courses should be girls.
  • Roberta® teachers are sensitive to their own gender-specific behaviour.
  • Roberta® teachers are sensitive to different learning styles of girls and boys.
  • The tasks are integrated into topics that are interesting for girls and boys.

In our Roberta courses, LEGO Mindstorm construction kits are used. These provide easy access to the development of small, handy robots and thus offer a wide range of applications. Programming with the graphical environment requires no prior knowledge. Many feedbacks confirm that the course participants really enjoy building and programming the Robertas.

Initially, the focus for the courses was on the older female students (e.g. during the trial study in the autumn holidays and for the NwT classes (9th grade) of the St. Dominikus Gymnasium Karlsruhe) with whom we advertised for computer science/business informatics studies. However, it is known from gender research that girls like to deal with technology when they are still in a playful phase of life and are among themselves, especially when experimenting. This is what we want to promote with the offer.

So we offer courses in spring on Girls' Day and for the BeoNetwork of the Karlsruhe City Youth Committee, and since 2016 in the summer holidays at the Children's Summer Academy in Bruchsal. In 2020, it was planned to hold the course for the first time at the Children's Summer Academy in Ettlingen. However, due to the Corona pandemic, all courses in 2020 had to be cancelled and in the hope that the courses can take place in 2021, all four courses have been confirmed again.