Leading Students on the Path to DiscoverE

In March, IBM Research in Israel hosted 850 students for the 8th annual DiscoverE program, part of the global IBM trend to motivate the future generation of hi-tech professionals. The two venues were in Petah Tikvah and Haifa. DiscoverE brings the world of hi-tech to 9th grade students, exposing these young people to innovations and advanced technologies that affect our daily life. IBM hopes to lead the students on the path of discovery, to generate enthusiasm, and encourage them to consider a career in hi-tech. It was a three-day adventure into the world of technology, with TED-style talks and activities in mathematics, science, and engineering. The students spent each day learning about new and developing technologies from IBM scientists, on topics such as such as wearable computing, advanced video technologies, digital agriculture, patents, security, algorithms that can help doctors, how to establish a start-up in the cloud, and more.

A daily feedback questionnaire was sent to the students’ smartphones, to learn whether their visit influenced their opinions on the hi-tech industry, and the career options in hi-tech. Their experiences certainly changed some of their stereotypical views on the world of hi-tech and engineering as a profession, making it seem more accessible, less limiting, and highlighting the “cool” factor in working on finding solutions for making the world a better place. According to the students’ responses, they learned that it is a fascinating and diverse profession, were happy to learn that is equally open to women, and discovered that it is a career that offers advancement, potentially high salaries, and business trips abroad.

The response of one high school principal to the activities was short and sweet, “The students and teachers enjoyed themselves, there was a great atmosphere: we were given a warm welcome, the students were very impressed with the working conditions and benefits of a career in hi-tech. The meeting with developers was stimulating and led the students to think about where to focus the rest of their studies.”

Exactly what we were aiming for!