VEX Robotics Team Excels in First Tournament
Byline - Nick Steffer and Angelo Govender, VEX Team Sponsors
On Friday, December 12, the Yongsan International School of Seoul (YISS) High School VEX Robotics team competed in their first qualifying tournament of the season at Korea International School (KIS). This event marked an exciting milestone for this inaugural program, as YISS fielded two teams that had spent months preparing for competitive play.
Throughout the semester, both teams demonstrated strong dedication and teamwork as they designed and programmed their robots in preparation for the competition. Their hard work paid off on tournament day, with both teams earning numerous match victories and gaining valuable experience in a highly competitive environment.
VEX Robotics is an international robotics program that provides a scalable platform for students ranging from elementary school through university. Each year, teams participate in a game-based engineering challenge that requires students to design and construct robots using VEX components, program them for autonomous and driver-controlled tasks, and compete in regional, national, and international tournaments. Teams work toward qualifying for a spot at the VEX Robotics World Championship.
The KIS tournament is part of the broader KAIAC VEX Robotics season. Following their strong performance, the YISS teams are now looking ahead to their next qualifying tournament at Seoul Foreign School (SFS) in January.
Beyond the competition, the VEX Robotics program emphasizes essential skills such as problem-solving, collaboration, and critical thinking. With a new challenge introduced each year, students are continually encouraged to innovate, adapt, and refine their engineering and coding abilities.
In addition to the VEX team, Mr. Govender teaches a robotics class that integrates science, technology, engineering, and math. Class assignments require students to work together to design, build, and program robots to solve problems that require logical thinking, creativity, teamwork, and practical application of physics and math.
