Hundreds of students attend Maine Learning Technology Initiative Student Conference

ORONO, Maine (WABI) – Hundreds of school students from across the state attended the annual Maine Learning Technology Initiative Student Conference in Orono Thursday.

The event was hosted on the University of Maine campus by the Maine Department of Education.

It focused on educating students in a fun way on topics such as robotics, AI, and cyber security.

Those from the department say it’s important to stay up to date on teaching kids about those emerging fields.

“When technology comes on the scene, it tends to stick around. So, we try to do our best to prepare students not only for what’s here right now, but also what they are gonna see in five years from now and how can we lay the foundational principles for them so that they can be successful no matter what the next technology advancement is,” said Emma Banks, event coordinator, Maine Department of Education.

“They kind of just make it more entertaining for the kids so we’re not just sitting in a college class. We’re actually doing fun entertaining hands-on work,” said Zoie Elliott from Windsor Elementary School and presented at the event.

Activities ranged from an AI training camp to a Lego robotics session.

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