CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- From individual computer codes to a complete, fully-functioning robot, students from across the state are working through the whole process in front of state lawmakers for a day.
Computer science students and robotics teams across 11 schools in West Virginia set up their coding and robotics projects in the Upper Rotunda of the state Capitol Monday for the second annual Country Roads Codes Day.
It was a chance for the students to present the coding and robotics projects they've been working on this school year in front of legislatures and demonstrate what they can do with robots that have fully been built or with small devices that have been coded.
Leighann Hender, a 7th grade student from Teays Valley Christian School is on an all girls robotics team called Lions of Judah.
She said on the team, they all have specific jobs, she as the coder, and then a driver, builder and competition and engineering notebook keeper.
Hender said the robot relies on each individual sets of codes to operate, and coding is it's own unique kind of scientific process.
"It's kind of cool when you're coding because you aren't using your remote, like you aren't physically driving it, you have to put it all into a program to make the robot brain do it itself," she said.
Hender said they use coding to program their robots to shoot at goals with rubber bands and earn points.
She said it can be a challenge and a constant learning process.
"We have to change our rubber bands constantly, we have to figure out the measurements with where on the field we want to go to get to the top goal, or to get to the bottom goal, or to pass, or to do all of these things that add up to win," said Hender.
Another member of the team, Maddie Beckett, 7th grade, is the notebook keeper who writes down the process of how their robot is working as well as any alterations they had to make along the way.
"What I do as Notebook is whenever there is a problem, I have to explain it through a lot of detail, and some people might think it's a journal, but really it's like, you don't need to talk about your emotions at all you just need to talk about the straight statistics and facts about the situation," she said.
Beckett said computer coding is something she never really thought about pursuing further until she realized the vast number of opportunities in the field, especially since it allowed her to match it with her passion for writing.
"I had no idea what I was doing, it was my first year ever with trying anything like this except for something in elementary school where we coded robots, but the robots were already pre-built for you, so when I got into it and started Notebook, I realized that Notebook is pretty much all I love doing, just like writing down everything that happens and that kind of stuff," said Beckett.
Hender said they all work well together and despite the challenge it can bring, she is passionate about the process.
"I love the way you have to do it and I love the motivation that you have to have to do it, and the teamwork you need to have, and the determination," Hender said.
West Virginia Department of Education Director of Pre K-12 Academic Support Erika Klose said many schools in the state are currently expanding their computer science programs which includes the growth of coding and robotics teams.
She said coding is beneficial to the students because it's completely hands-on and puts them fully in-charge of the learning process.
"The thing that's so exciting about robotics is that it allows students to see their coding happen," she said. "They get to write code and then watch a robot do some pretty amazing things."
Klose said learning to computer code is crucial for the students of today, because it's starting to represent a significant portion of future jobs.
"As we look at so many of where are careers are headed, an understanding of computer science, and algorithms, and how software works is incredibly important," Klose said. "As we look at how things are changing with Artificial Intelligence and things like that, it's even more important our kids have an understanding of what is happening behind the scenes."