 Global employment in computing was projected to grow 30 per cent from 2010 to 2020, much faster than the average for all occupations. Yet, enrolment in computing degrees is down in many universities worldwide. Founders of the Department of Computing and Information Technology (DCIT) Boot Camp saw this as an opportunity to diversify the economy of Trinidad and Tobago and the region in the area of computing and IT, and set out last year to stimulate local interest.
The idea was to get a significant number of high school students to have a strong interest in computing and to be willing to pursue higher education in this area, such as degree programmes in Computer Science and Information Technology.
So from July 23-27, the DCIT hosted its second annual Computer Science and IT Boot Camp for secondary school students, attracting 36 students, three times as many as last year.
The Camp charged a registration fee of $1300 to cover costs like field trips and meals. The Organizing Committee invited students to apply for scholarships to cover this fee, and all of the 18 applicants were successful through contributions from several companies such as the Trinidad and Tobago Network Information Centre, Medullan, and Caribbean Retinal Eyecare Supplies.
 The Boot Camp covered a wide variety of areas, including Computer Programming, Game Programming, Robot Programming, Web Development, Mobile Software Development, Wireless Networking, Database Systems, Hardware and Software, Mental Mathematics, and Performance Capture. Each day was filled with a mixture of seminars, hands-on labs and demonstrations, and each session was conducted by a faculty member or postgraduate student from DCIT or from an industry practitioner. There were also guest presentations from several external institutions.
Apart from the classroom and lab activities, a field trip enabled participants to see technology in action at Caribbean Airlines at key aspects of the operations of the airline including Command and Control, the Call Centre, and the Data Centre, with lectures on the importance of Computing and IT at the company.
Campers saw technology at play at the IMAX theatre where they viewed the 3D documentaries Space Station and Under the Sea. There was also a session on Performance Capture which explained how computer technology was used in the making of popular movies such as Avatar and The Adventures of Tin Tin. The Boot Camp even featured a social evening where participants played games on the popular Kinect Xbox station.
 Animation is an important industry with lots of potential for Trinidad and Tobago and one highlight was a presentation from a leading animation company in Malaysia, Les’ Copaque. It was delivered via Skype by Usamah Zaid, Executive Director, who discussed how the company was formed and what was involved in producing some of the popular animations that have brought it international fame. He played video clips from Upin and Ipin, an animation series for young children that is well-known throughout South-East Asia. This series has been licensed by Disney Channel Asia. The students were able to ask several questions and were excited to interact in real-time with Mr. Zaid, who is also Creative Director of Les’ Copaque.
On the closing afternoon there was a presentation from Dr. David Siguelnitzky, President of the Herbert Fletcher University, an online university based in Puerto Rico. Dr. Siguelnitzky was formerly a PhD student in Computer Science at The UWI. He spoke about his career as a Computer Scientist and his experience in online learning which ultimately landed him the job as President of the University.
At the end, participants gave high ratings to most aspects of the camp, especially its technical content, with the online presentation from Malaysia being most popular. Several said the exposure improved their interest in ICT and many said the Boot Camp opened their eyes to new opportunities.
Special thanks to all the members of the organizing committee, student volunteers and DCIT. For news on the 2013 DCIT Boot Camp, please visit the DCIT website at http://sta.uwi.edu/fst/dcit/. |
