Young Filipino innovators bag special awards in international robotics competition 

Manila, Philippines [July 8, 2021] – Young Filipino teams, aged 12-13, from Ateneo de Iloilo – Santa Maria Catholic School and PAREF Southridge bagged the special awards in this year’s MakeX Spark Online Global Competition that ran from January to June 2021 and participated by 107 teams worldwide.  

The awards given recognize the different competencies required in the field of STEAM. Here is list of our Special Awardees who competed in the intermediate category:  

• Young Innovator. An award given to contestants who demonstrated their unique theme exploration and innovation ability.
• Yllac Javier Guinto and Jacob Vincent Malig, PAREF Southridge (“ProjectSSS: Seal for Safety and Security”)
• John Raphael Cruz and Jahaziel Parinas, PAREF Southridge (“Clean Cycle”)  
• Enzo Dominic Perez and Michael Craig Sing, Ateneo de Iloilo – Santa Maria Catholic School (“TranspoSafeBot”) 
• Young Engineer. An award given to those who showed excellent electronic and programming capabilities.
• Young Engineer – Lian Anthony Papna and Joshua Rely Abelita, Ateneo de Iloilo – Santa Maria Catholic School (“Bantay Ranger”) 
• Best Demonstration. An award given to those who showed exceptional communication skills and rich content construction.
• Best Demonstration – Joaqui Nathan Yap and Jacob Danilo Abelita, Ateneo de Iloilo – Santa Maria Catholic School (“SauberBot”) 

Robotics coaches Aldren Camposagrado and Gillea V. Millama from Ateneo de Iloilo – Santa Maria Catholic School also received the Excellent Mentor special award. The award is comprehensively decided according to the number of contestants and award-winning projects instructed by the same mentor. 

MakeX Spark is an annual international robotics competition that focuses on guiding young designers to use their abilities in solving practical problems. The theme for 2021 is “Code for Health” where participants contributed to safeguarding human health.  

Likewise, a special competition was also organized for ASEAN countries where two Philippine teams were also recognized. The following students received the Excellence Award for the ASEAN Invitational Competition 2021: 

• Enzo Dominic Perez and Michael Craig Sing, Ateneo de Iloilo – Santa Maria Catholic School (“TranspoSafeBot”) 
• Michio Nathan Tiglao and Arielle Francene Dela Cruz – Diliman Preparatory School (“Social Distancing Project”) 

The ASEAN Invitational Competition 2021, jointly hosted by the Guangxi Association for Science and Technology, Department of Education of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, and the People’s Government of Hezhou City, invited countries all over the ASEAN region to compete in MakeX Spark. 

These schools are all partners of TechFactors, Inc. Their respective coaches and students attended training sessions on the following topics: Engineering Design Process, Poster Design, Video Production, Effective Presentation Skills, and Effective Collaboration Process.  

TechFactors, Inc. offers RoboTek, an innovative and comprehensive courseware in robotics available in K-12. The RoboTek the curriculum features a problem-based learning framework that promotes the development of the student’s 21st skills: critical thinking, creativity, communication, and collaboration to prepare them for the demands of the future learning and working environment. 

TechFactors, Inc. was founded in 2004 as an advocacy to improve the country’s education system and develop world-class Filipino graduates ready for the 21st century and for competing on the global stage. 

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