"When I grow up, I'm going to be an engineer!" – for children and young people in the Central Hesse region, this may soon no longer be an uncommon career aspiration. A new regional center of the "Roberta – Learning with Robots" initiative, run by the Fraunhofer Institute for Intelligent Analysis and Information Systems IAIS, has opened at the Technische Hochschule Mittelhessen THM(THM). From now on, teachers from the region will receive support here in inspiring children and young people with LEGO MINDSTORMS robots for technology and science.

Engineers are crucial for maintaining Germany's position as a hub of technology and innovation. However, as recent studies – including one by the Association of German Engineers (VDI) – show, the shortage of young talent in these sectors will continue to worsen: The average age of skilled workers is steadily increasing, while the number of graduates remains below the European average. The Central Hesse region is addressing this problem through targeted support for young talent with the "Roberta" program. Students program their own LEGO MINDSTORMS robots, playfully solving scientific problems in the process. The activities are coordinated at the Friedberg campus of the Technical University of Central Hesse THM). A new Roberta Regional Center has been established there – serving as a training facility and contact point for interested teachers from the region.

“Barriers to technology and science often arise as early as school age. That’s why it’s important to show talented students early on how they can develop their abilities,” explains Eva Langstrof, head of the Roberta Regional Center at THM. “The Roberta initiative offers us an excellent platform for this: The use of LEGO robots provides children and young people with direct connections to everyday experiences and makes formulas and computer programs immediately visible and tangible.” Langstrof became aware of the Roberta initiative during a Professional Development course on gender-specific teaching of mathematics, computer science, and natural sciences (STEM). Through a research project of the Gender and Women’s Research Center of the Hessian Universities (gFFZ), she succeeded in establishing the concept at THM and founding the Regional Center.

“The long-term goal of our initiative is to have a presence throughout Germany,” says Thorsten Leimbach, head of the Roberta initiative at Fraunhofer IAIS. “We want to give all students access to Roberta courses and support teachers nationwide in teaching STEM subjects. Until now, the Central Hesse region has been largely untapped in terms of Roberta activities. The new regional center at THM in Friedberg closes this gap.”

For over ten years, the Roberta initiative of Fraunhofer IAIS has been inspiring children and young people throughout Germany to pursue careers in technology and science. The gender- and age-appropriate courses using LEGO robots help children and young people – especially girls – to break down barriers to technical professions.