Middle School Robotics team places sixth of 40

The Middle School Robotics team placed sixth of 40 teams in the robotics portion of a Georgia First Lego League Super Regional tournament held Jan. 8 at Southern Polytechnic State University in Atlanta. This event was one of only three Super Regional tournaments to be held in Georgia this year.

As part of the competition, the team was required to research and solve a biomedical problem relevant to their community. Because of the prevalence of cancer cases in the Darlington Community and the personal impact these cases have had on local families, the students decided to find out how much people really understand about cancer, especially in the areas of basic biology and treatment options.
 
First, they interviewed Dr. Melissa Dillmon, a local oncologist, and determined the 10 most important concepts that everyone should know about cancer. Second, they designed and administered a school-wide survey that focused on these key cancer concepts, receiving over 300 survey responses from all three divisions. Third, they used the survey data to determine where confusion exists in the realm of cancer awareness. Fourth, they visited four local physicians and interviewed them about these particular areas of misunderstanding. Then, the team produced a video for the school that focused on correcting misconceptions and educating people of all ages about cancer.

"Each Super Regional tournament includes 40 top teams from a total of nearly 400 teams statewide," said Owen Kinney, Upper School science teacher. "Our team is comprised of eight boys, mostly sixth-graders, so placing sixth at this event is a wonderful accomplishment for a very young group of students."

Darlington hosted a First Lego League Regional Qualifier for students in grades 6-8 in December 2010 and a First Tech Challenge Robotics Qualifier for students in grades 9-12 on Feb. 5.