Engineering Project Kits  

Engineering Project Kits (EPK) designs and manufactures (in Australia) engineering and technology focused STEM projects for high school aged learners. EPK projects champion the engineering discipline to be a more collaborative, social, creative, fun and inclusive learning environment for both boys and girls. Our aim is to serve the public, private, home and special needs school student communities. To make learning engineering more engaging, students build something very cool, a table-top version of a physical retro game - the pinball machine.

 

Why a pinball machine? Firstly, there will be excitement and fun generated by creating with their own hands and minds an actual, physical, real-world game technology that can be played and later used on an ongoing basis to raise funds with a pay to play feature. Secondly, students can contribute and show-off their individual work by making one of the 16 subassembly kits each, and collectively when deciding on creative aspects such as the artwork (sound and vision). Collaboration is also essential when interconnecting all built kits and fitting them into the cabinet. This approach will develop students understanding of system design and principles.

 

EPK's project kits enables learn-by-doing with hands-on practical skills in soldering electronics components onto PCBs, wiring, microcontroller (Arduino) coding, 3D modelling and 3D printing, graphic and sonic artwork, assembling wood, plastic and mechanical assemblies. All kits come with free online access to detailed construction video tutorials.

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In addition to the kits and online video tutorials, EPK has partnered with a STEM education provider who runs two Course configurations. Course 1 is a 120 student (up to six schools), three-day hackathon style course with five tutors; Course 2 is a 60 student, 2hr per group of 20 students (over two 10-week terms) pinball machine construction course with two tutors present for the three 2hr sessions each day. They bring STEM Tutors and all the gear needed to build our kits at a range of schools and other local venues.

 

For high schools that don't have the budget to pay for an outsourced STEM education provider, their own STEM trained or interested teachers can utilise and adapt the Lesson Plans and detailed construction videos supplied free with each kit. EPK will work with schools/STEM teachers to help coordinate this process. Alternatively, students' parents and/or community groups can organise their own weekend courses for free and run these at their local schools, libraries and makerspaces.

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For high schools that don't have the budget to pay for the pinball machine hardware kits upfront, the EPK website has its own Crowdfunding system. Parents of school, home-school and special needs student groups wanting to enroll them in a construction course can organise and run their own Crowdfunding Campaigns through the EPK website. Crowdfunding backers might be students' parents, anyone wanting to buy the completed pinball machine, or corporate, government or charity sponsors. As the completed pinball machine is a commercial grade and desirable product the full cost of the 16 kits will readily be recouped by the sale of the machine. This means the hardware kits could essentially be free after the sale. As such, crowdfunding backers could be providing short-term kit loans.

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