ISRO to promote space education among children

Eleven Bengaluru schools, which offer the Atal Tinkering Labs (ATL) programmes, have been adopted by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to promote STEM, space education and space technology related innovations for school students

The Department of Space, Atal Innovation Mission and NITI Aayog announced that the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will be adopting 100 Atal Tinkering Labs (ATLs) across the country. 

Out of the 100 schools with ATL programme, 45 have been adopted by ISRO in phase 1 in January and remaining 55 will be adopted soon. With these school adoptions, according to ISRO chairman, K Sivan, “ISRO is taking a small step in engaging with the students, towards giving them direction in pursuing their space dreams as a part of ‘Atma Nirbhar Bharat’.”

“Scientists and engineers from ISRO centres, in close coordination with the Capacity Building Program Office, ISRO headquarters, shall actively mentor the kids as well as interact with teachers in these ATLs - encouraging experiments, brainstorming ideas and spreading awareness about outer space activities. He announced that students involved in these ATLs would be invited as guests to witness future launches from Sriharikota,” Sivan said in a statement.

With a vision to ‘Cultivate one Million children in India as Neoteric Innovators’, ATLs are being set up in schools across India. The objective of this scheme is to foster curiosity, creativity and imagination in young minds; and inculcate skills such as design mindset, computational thinking, adaptive learning, physical computing etc.

ATL is a workspace where young minds can give shape to their ideas through hands on do-it-yourself mode; and learn innovation skills. Young children will get a chance to work with tools and equipment to understand the concepts of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math). It also fosters entrepreneurship and innovation, enabling over 3 million students between classes VI and XII to acquire a problem solving, tinkering and innovative mindset.