SAP Africa and FIRST LEGO League support skills development of SA youth

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FLL is a global initiative that introduces children to the fun and excitement of science and technology, stimulates their creativity in problem solving and develops their ability to work in teams. This year marks the 9th anniversary of SAP Africa's involvement and commitment to FLL since being one of the first 10 countries to join the FLL in 2004.

"SAP's support of FLL is far more than financial; the real lifeblood of this initiative is the people of SAP," said Kudsee, "The unwavering commitment of the SAP employees who volunteer their time and expertise as coaches, mentors and judges is nothing short of extraordinary."

Each year the FLL challenge sees teams of children aged between 9 and 16 embracing a challenge based on a set of real-world problems facing scientists and engineers of today. In the 2014 FLL World Class Challenge 265,000 children from 80 countries will re-design how we gather knowledge and skills in the 21st century. Teams will teach adults about the ways that kids need and want to learn.

The are two parts to each challenge, the Robot Game and the Project.

1. In the Robot Game, teams design, build, program and test unique robots that must perform a series of tasks, or missions in under 2.5 minutes through multiple iterations and strategy re-planning.
   
2. In the Project, teams research a real-world problem in the field of the challenge theme, create an innovative solution and then share their findings to schoolmates, the public, specialists and apanel of judges.

By embracing the core values, the cornerstone of FLL, participants learn that friendly co-operation and mutual gain are not separate goals, and that helping one another is the foundation of teamwork.

The core values are:

• We are a team.
  
• We do the work to find solutions with guidance from our coaches and mentors.
  
• We know our coaches and mentors don't have all the answers; we learn together.
  
• We honour the spirit of friendly competition.
  
• What we discover is more important than what we win.
  
• We share our experiences with others.
  
• We display gracious professionalism and co-operation in everything we do.
  
• We have fun.

In 2004 FLL in South Africa comprised of 19 teams participating in 1 tournament, it has since grown to include 164 teams, 50 of which are supported by SAP Africa, competing in 7 tournaments. SAP Africa is the major FLL sponsor in South Africa, and the plan for 2015 is to expand the programme into Nigeria, Kenya and Zimbabwe through the SAP Africa network and focus countries.

In his welcome address, Kudsee said, "Building technological literacy in the youth is key, learning is not only about the classroom and books, it is about truly grasping the concept of whatever subject you are learning. The FIRST LEGO League is an initiative that drives the practical understanding of technology and innovation from an early age, inspiring a love of Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM). Scientists, mathematicians and innovators are a driving force behind the success of any country, and SAP Africa is at the forefront of creating the environments which encourage this."

The FLL National Championship will be held on 5 and 6 December at the Sci Bono Science Centre in Newtown and is open to the public.