Kent ISD — When Caledonia junior Laife Shuman began his motherboard drawing, he started with the input/output shield, where a person would plug in a video graphics array and/or an HDMI cable, he explained.
“I just moved along this way and went around,” Laife said as he pointed to various parts of his drawing that showed the location of a memory chip and other parts of the motherboard.
“I finished with the (central processing unit); it’s like the brains of the computer.”
Laife and his classmates in the Kent Career Tech Center’s Networking and Cyber Security class were participating in the ArtPrize Motherboard mock-cocktail hour. The event focused less on showcasing their computer skills and more on building communication abilities they can use in many situations.
Instructor Mike Pepper said the event was designed to highlight the Tech Center’s Going Pro skills: professionalism, respect and ownership.
“The technical part was the easy part to lean on if we needed to talk about something,” Pepper said, adding that while the students are fairly knowledgeable about technology, they also need to develop strong communication skills in order to present projects and work well in groups.
The ArtPrize Motherboard event was set up art gallery-style, with beverages and light snacks. The Tech Center’s Criminal Justice students served as security.
Students greeted visitors, and team leaders outlined the learning steps: crafting a Play-Doh motherboard, taking an oral test and drawing a motherboard by hand. Afterward, students practiced their conversational skills by interacting with the guests.
About 15 of the motherboard drawings were displayed, and — much like ArtPrize itself — visitors and students selected the top three, which were announced at the end of the event.
Discussing Projects & Career Paths
In the two 30-minute sessions held in the morning and afternoon, students engaged visitors in conversations on a variety of subjects.
Northview senior Mazonna Holiday said she really did not know anything about a motherboard before studying it and creating her drawing, which was one of the 15 displayed. One thing she learned is the importance of an IO shield to protect the motherboard from dust and particles from getting inside, Mazonna said.
“We are going to be doing a lot of work, like building computers, and this is one of the things that we had to pass, this motherboard test, to go on and build a computer so we can start doing other related things, like installing operating systems and using the computer,” said Thornapple Kellogg junior Anthony Sager Wissner.
Godwin Heights junior Christopher Gasca-Zurita said when his school started an esports program a couple of years ago, “That got me really going into the tech field, and I started realizing that I really needed to learn skills in IT to have more of a chance for a career.”
Maxwell Machajewski, a junior at Jenison Innovation Academy, said he plans to earn an associate degree through the program by the time he graduates, which he hopes will help launch him into a career in the IT field.
Luka Jovanvic, a senior at Rockford High School whose large-scale motherboard drawing took first place during the afternoon session, said he also is looking to explore possible careers in the IT field.
“I think opportunities like this provide us with a chance to meet people, do some talking on similar subjects and the opportunity to be exposed to different settings.”
Read more from Kent ISD:
• Classroom to state council: Students step into leadership through SkillsUSA
• Tech Center’s newest class makes the connection between marketing and design
