TeenTech is almost an addiction

Kevin Doig shares his technological experience at TeenTech events with young secondary students. TeenTech links young people to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) careers and opportunities. Since 2008 it has been running regular events where organisations bring technology and ideas together to create a lively forum for secondary school students.

‘What makes it for me is the “wow” reaction of the young people when they get their hands on the technology!’

I’ve spent over 25 years working with techy devices or helping people learn how they work, or how to use them, so TeenTech is almost an extension of the day job.

The BBC has been involved for a few years at TeenTech events at various locations across England. I’ve had the pleasure of helping on some of these over the last couple of years. I’m not sure the word “pleasure” is the right one - it’s not strong enough - for me - TeenTech is almost like an addiction!

In common with other companies and universities that attend these events, we show off technology. What makes it for me is the “wow” reaction of the young people when they get their hands on the technology! If that wow factor inspires and helps some of those who attend make positive choices about their future, then volunteering at the event is a truly rewarding experience. The reward is stronger as some of the target groups of students that schools select are those who are at risk of or who have disengaged from education. A day at a TeenTech event can have a dramatic effect on their motivation!

Doing a TeenTech event feels a bit like being a travelling salesman - you roll up in a town, open your suitcase of wares and enchant the audience. The wares’ names sound like things Delboy might try and sell! These include - an invisibility cloak, a whacky ultrasonic speaker, 3D scanners and surround-sound headphones.

Another positive for me is within the BBC Value “great things happen when we work together.” Our presence at TeenTech would not happen without support from departments such as Blueroom, Research and Development, Digital, and English Regions. TeenTech events have introduced me to new parts of the BBC and people.

The best TeenTech event I worked on was in an Olympic venue in London. Apprentice engineers staffed the stands, with the assistance of their managers and Huw Davies in BBC Academy. What really made the event for me was the brilliant way that the apprentices showed the technology and engaged the students. The apprentices’ enthusiasm and fun was truly infectious!

At the end of the event there was a university stand next to ours, with a clever motion capture system and an impressive array of cameras. Our stand had one camera which we used with an invisibility cloak (similar to a green screen with a twist). The guys from the university wanted to be photographed with it. Our simple demo had a bit of TV “magic” which works for both young and old. The visitors’ reaction to our demos is something that makes TeenTech such a great thing to volunteer on.

Kevin Doig is among more than 50 BBC staff who have volunteered as part of BBC Make it Digital, with TeenTech, Codeclub.org, and Young Rewired State, since April 2015.