Java Magazine - March/April 2012

For Inspiration and Recognition of Science
and Technology (FIRST) is a nonprofit organi-
zation that helps young people discover and
develop a passion for science, engineering,
technology, and math. Founded more than 20
years ago by inventor Dean Kamen, the
2009–2010 FIRST season attracted more
than 210,000 youth and more than 90,000 mentors, coaches, and volunteers
from 56 countries. The annual programs culminate in an international robotics
competition and celebration, where teams win recognition, gain self-confidence,
develop people and life skills, make new friends, and perhaps discover an unfore-
seen career path.

The Java SDK for FIRST Robotics is based on the Squawk Java Virtual Machine (JVM). Inspired by the Smalltalk Squeak project, the main goal of the Squawk virtual machine project is to write as much of the virtual machine as possible in Java, for portability, ease of debugging, and maintainability. Traditionally, most JVMs are written in C/C++. Squawk aims at pushing the bar and writing most of the JVM in Java.

Greenlight for Girls is an international nongovernmental organization and a social initiative with the mission to encourage young girls of all ages to consider a future in math, science, engineering, and/or technology by introducing them to the world of science in fun and exciting ways. At Greenlight@Brussels Day 2011, Tasha Carl and other members of Brussels Java User Group—supported by the Paris, France–based European Space Agency and Genoa, Italy–based Scuola di Robotica (School of Robotics)—organized a successful workshop as part of EU Robotics Week. Teams of girls in Brussels, Belgium, and Genoa programmed robots for a simulated “Mission on Mars” as part of an event reaching 300 girls, inspiring them to study science and technology.

Java-Based ROBOTICS COMPETITIONS

“Few subjects will open as many doors for students in the twenty-first century as computer science and engineering,” says Dolan. “As the steward of Java, Oracle is uniquely positioned to help educators awaken and deepen students’ interest in these subjects.”

CHOOSING JAVA

“I use Java for a lot of personal projects but had never used it for developing a Web application.

JAVA TECH ABOUT US

hands-on access to Oracle applications that are widely used in a variety of industries.

The Oracle Academy’s Introduction program delivers semester-based curriculum that can be easily incorporated into secondary school computer science programs. Later this year, the Oracle Academy is releasing a new Java curriculum for secondary school students.

NEW JAVA CURRICULUM, PLUS
ALICE AND GREENFOOT

The Oracle Academy’s Java curriculum targets students with little or no previous programming experience. The two-semester curriculum starts with Java Fundamentals and is followed by Java Programming.

“Our Java curriculum maps to both the Advanced Placement [AP] Computer Science A exam [delivered in the U.S.] and Oracle’s Java certification exam,” explains Dolan.

As a complement to the Java curriculum, the Oracle Academy looks for innovative, engaging ways to promote Java and technology education. Oracle supports Alice and Greenfoot, two interactive Java programming environments for students. “Alice and Greenfoot are designed to be fun and engaging—they really grab students’ attention. When young people use these applications, they are immediately successful and, in turn, become highly motivated to learn more,” says Dolan.

For students ages 10 through 22, Alice
introduces object-oriented programming
through a drag-and-drop programming
environment that allows students to create
animation for telling a story, playing an inter-
active game, or sharing a video on the Web.
For students at the secondary and under-
graduate levels, Greenfoot provides a Java
development environment
that enables easy creation of
two-dimensional graphical
applications, such as simula-
tions and interactive games.
While the new Oracle
Academy Java curriculum
and initiatives like Alice and
Greenfoot foster early student
interest in computer science
and Java learning opportuni-
ties, the Oracle Academy also
works to ensure that college/
university students gain
industry-relevant skills prior to
entering the workforce.