✦V5RC 國中組 12181C｜何澄希、言沛可、具娜琳、袁依仁、袁處仁、許芯瑜、陳盈恩、具東奕
Facing Challenges as a New Team
As this was our first year in VEX, we faced challenges because we weren’t entirely familiar with the VEX, so we had to learn through trial and error. With a team that isn’t entirely composed of girls, preparing for this Online Challenge was slightly difficult. However, the advantage of having an even split of boys and girls was that Girl Powered energy could be spread more evenly.
Learning from Women in STEM
Along the journey of creating a video for the Girl Powered Online Challenge, especially for the girls in our team, we gained many insights into how women have succeeded even during their lowest points. One example we explored was Edith Clarke. She was the first female engineer and paved the way for many women, showing that determination can make anything possible.
Through the Girl Powered STEM Spotlight Online Challenge, our team learned not only about historical and contemporary women in STEM but also about what motivated them to thrive. Before this experience, we had not fully realized how much past and present female figures have shaped the opportunities available to girls today. One of the most important messages we want to convey is that your abilities are not limited by gender, societal norms, or external expectations, but by your own beliefs. It’s not about age or background—what matters is putting your heart into something you love. By doing so, you can achieve anything. Furthermore, women in STEM serve as role models worldwide, showing that it’s okay to be the first to try something new, as Edith Clarke did despite societal doubts. For our team, being Girl Powered doesn’t mean all members have to be girls, but having girls on the team, even just one or two, demonstrates that they can lead, innovate, and overcome boundaries of gender or society. Adopting this mindset opens limitless possibilities—truly, the sky ’s the limit.
Understanding the True Meaning of VEX
When we first started VEX, we thought it was just about building robots, coding, jotting down information for the engineering notebook, all of these just for a ticket to the VEX Worlds Championships. But as we immersed ourselves in the concept of a Girl Powered team, we realized that VEX is not only for boys but for girls too, and girls play a crucial role in the team.
VEX isn’t just about engineering, it’s about working together no matter who you are, the leadership you bring to the team, the communication between the team members, and lastly the relationships you build. We believe that our team’s most unforgettable memory is the moment we start to discover the true meaning of VEX, the main purpose of VEX, and to us it means a lot more. Designing is no longer just about planning your robot, but planning team unity. Building is no longer just about building with c-channels, but building bonds. Coding is no longer just about communicating with an indecipherable language with a computer, but communicating with each other. All these things led us to strongly believe that, with a team that shares the same definition of VEX, walls can be broken.
Comparing Real-Life and Online Challenges
The difference between real-life competitions and online challenges is quite evident. In online challenges, there’s significantly less interaction with other teams and participants, which can make the experience feel a bit more remote. However, online challenges push us to think beyond just building robots—they encourage us to explore broader STEM topics. For example, the Girl Powered Challenge inspired us to question societal norms and highlight the importance of women in STEM fields. While real-life competitions offer more face-to-face excitement, the online format brought its own intensity, especially with the large pool of participants, which made the competition fiercer and more globally competitive.
Lessons Learned from the Challenge
Participating in this online challenge has taught us valuable lessons about the role of women in STEM and how their achievements continue to inspire future generations. Through our interview with Kathy Yan and research on pioneers like Edith Clarke, we gained insight into what helped these role models thrive—passion, perseverance, and a willingness to break barriers. These stories have motivated us to bring that same mindset into our own VEX team. We’ve learned to embrace different perspectives, support one another, and push ourselves to grow in all areas of STEM. The girls in our team, especially, have been inspired to explore new skills, take on leadership roles, and strive for improvement through every step of our VEX robotics journey.
Extra Thoughts and Memorable Moments
This project gave our team the opportunity to dive into the history of women in STEM and learn about the impactful contributions of both past and present role models. As we explored their impact, we were inspired to be more confident in our own abilities and to believe in what we can achieve. Along the way, our team grew closer—not just through collaboration, but by truly understanding and appreciating each other’s strengths and perspectives. We learned to embrace different ideas and approaches, which made this project stronger and even more meaningful. Despite the challenges we faced, the time and effort we put into this project brought us even closer as a team and reminded us of the importance of perseverance, unity, and mutual respect.
This online challenge was a fun and unique experience that stood out from our usual robotics competitions. It pushed us to think outside the box and approach STEM in a more holistic way—not just focusing on building robots, but exploring broader concepts and real-world issues. Throughout the process, we strengthened our research skills, refined our analytical thinking, and enhanced our creativity. It was especially exciting to see many of our team members shine by showcasing their creative and directorial talents, whether it was through writing scripts or brainstorming and designing scenes. Overall, this challenge brought us many lovely memories and enriching ways to grow as a team and as individuals.
