Small robots drafted to help tackle looming renewable skills shortage

The Ozobots workshops are part of a push to prepare students for the renewable energy workforce. (ABC News: Jack Colantuono) Victoria's State Electricity Commission is trying to encourage interest in renewable energy careers through a robots-in-schools program. Modelling shows that Australia is facing potential skill shortages in jobs critical to the transition to renewable energy. Work is expected to accelerate on short-term renewable energy workforce measures and longer-term efforts to build skills through education programs in schools. Link copiedShareShare articleIn a classroom in Victoria's east, the future of Australia's energy system is being mapped out in black markers. At Stockdale Road Primary School in Traralgon, students are placing small robots, called Ozobots, onto black lines of maps and coding their every move. Traralgon is in Victoria's Latrobe Valley, the heart of the state's coal-fired power industry. The activity is part of a State Electricity Commission-run renewable energy workshop designed to entice kids into potential careers in the industry. While these kids are at least a decade away from choosing their career paths, the aim is to plant the seed early, in the hope of filling some of the roles in a projected 67,000 workforce. The Ozobots are programmed to detect and follow a black track on a map. (ABC News: Jack Colantuono) According to Jobs and Skills Australia, the transition to net zero will transform at least 38 occupations, particularly in electricity supply, engineering and technical trades. Jobs and Skills Australia is a body set up by the federal government to advise it and industry about the nation's skills needs. Its modelling shows a growing risk of shortages in vocational roles, especially electricians and other trades needed for renewable infrastructure. Alison Reeve says there are short and long-term solutions to consider. (Supplied: Grattan Institute) Grattan Institute energy and climate change program director Alison Reeve said while programs such as Ozobots would help address renewable energy workforce shortages in the long term, short-term solutions were urgently needed to meet growing demand in the sector. “Things like the Ozobots are really dealing with the long-term skills problem because that will be making sure that more kids see this as an option,” she said. But Ms Reeve said the challenge would be building that workforce in time. "Someone who is thinking about starting TAFE next year, by the time we get to 2040, they're going to be one of the experienced people who's in that sort of cohort of 67,000," she said. The robots can teach students how to apply critical thinking to real-world challenges. (ABC News: Jack Colantuono) Ms Reeve said short-term workforce shortages could be addressed through skilled migration and retraining or micro-credentialing existing energy sector workers. "To get to that 67,000, we actually need to make sure that we are attracting people with the right skills into the sector now, but also helping to build up people who've already got some of the skills that could help," Ms Reeve said. "That's where [you] take someone who's already very experienced, but just give them a small amount of accredited training to allow them to get a particular new skill." For grade six student Brody Appleyard, the Ozobots made a complex topic easier to understand. "They were really fun, really easy to work out and the codes and things were not too difficult," he said. Brody Appleyard says the Ozobots were easy and fun. (ABC News: Jack Colantuono) Science teacher Megan Burns said the hands-on task helped students engage in a teamwork environment. "It’s really good to connect kids with real-life science and a hands-on activity in the classroom," she said. "They’ve been able to show their problem-solving and digital technology skills." Megan Burns says the activity helped students stay engaged and build teamwork skills. (ABC News: Jack Colantuono) SEC student engagement lead Sian Fitzpatrick said the aim was to make complex decisions accessible. "The Ozobots have little sensors at the bottom of them, they read the black track … the code is a series of colours, blue, green and red, and the order of those colours change the code," she said. As the robots move across maps, students must consider the environmental and community impacts of specific renewable energy projects. "Students quite often want to put a wind farm near a camping ground, but when they're encouraged to look more closely, they can see there's koalas in that tree," Ms Fitzpatrick said. "And that generates a whole conversation about, do we really want to put a project here when we could jeopardise those koalas' natural habitat? And they all choose not to." Sian Fitzpatrick says the Ozobot workshops are part of preparing young people for the future. (ABC News: Jack Colantuono) The Ozobots reflect a broader push to prepare young students for a changing workforce.

Small robots drafted to help tackle looming renewable skills shortage

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