Science Reaches Children in Marginalized Communities

Mónica Valladolid

CVDR and CIITA bring science closer to children in underserved communities

Elementary, middle school, and high school students living in remote communities across Mexico are being introduced to science and technology through outreach activities carried out by specialists from the Instituto Politécnico Nacional (IPN), who travel by land to visit children primarily in marginalized regions of the country.

The initiative is part of the Mobile Learning Unit (UMA) program, jointly operated by the IPN’s network of Regional Liaison and Development Centers (CVDR) and Centers for Innovation and Integration of Advanced Technologies (CIITA), through 15 locations nationwide.

Although the IPN is widely recognized for its academic programs at the upper secondary, undergraduate, and graduate levels, its specialists also travel long distances and overcome geographic challenges to support children’s education in underserved communities.

The mobile units used for these visits are vans equipped with screens, sound systems, tablets or laptops, additional air conditioning, and power generators, enabling instructors to deliver presentations and provide hands-on technological experiences for children.

According to the director of the Regional Liaison Center Unit Oaxaca, Jusey Martínez Carrasco, approximately 50,000 children nationwide benefited from the program last year, including around 4,500 in remote communities across Oaxaca.

“In elementary schools, we introduce topics such as Artificial Intelligence, drones, the IPN’s violence prevention tool known as the violentómetro, environmental awareness, first aid, and basic computer skills. We also include playful activities at the end, where children meet the IPN mascot, ‘Cecilio,’” he explained.

For middle school and high school students in remote areas, the Mobile Learning Unit program offers workshops on block-based programming, data science, and Generative Artificial Intelligence.

A Before-and-After Experience Regarding the outreach activities carried out in Oaxaca, Martínez Carrasco explained that some journeys made by the Mobile Learning Unit can take up to 15 hours due to the region’s complex geography, terrain, and weather conditions. Despite these challenges, he emphasized the satisfaction of seeing children become engaged with science and technology.

“The children are amazed when they see the landscape through the drone we bring. We believe this can spark their curiosity and encourage them to continue their education instead of turning toward antisocial activities,” he said.

“I believe this represents a before-and-after moment in terms of early stimulation and access to technology for communities that are often forgotten because of geography and distance. Yet they have all the talent and potential needed to contribute to the development of Oaxaca and Mexico,” Martínez Carrasco added.

The network operating the Mobile Learning Unit program currently has locations in Culiacán, Campeche, Cancún, Chihuahua, Durango, Los Mochis, Mazatlán, Morelia, Oaxaca, Puebla, Tampico, Tijuana, Tlaxcala, and Veracruz. In total, the program operates 13 Mobile Learning Units that visit remote communities.

Any school may request a visit from the IPN Mobile Learning Units free of charge, with priority given to low-income or underserved populations.