Final Workshop – Submarine Testing, Evaluation & Learning Outcomes Assessment

This final session marks the grand finale of the Underwater Explorers program — a day dedicated to experimentation, reflection, and scientific validation. After weeks of construction, soldering, drilling, wiring, and engineering problem-solving, the student teams will finally bring their submarines to life through the long-awaited water testing session.
The workshop will begin with a brief recap of the key physical principles explored throughout the project: buoyancy, density, pressure, stability, propulsion, and electrical-to-mechanical energy conversion. Mentors will highlight how each component of the submarine — from the PVC structure to the motor insulation — embodies these concepts in a tangible engineering system.
Students will then proceed to the testing area, where each team will place its submarine in the water for the first time. This phase will allow them to observe whether:
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Their submarines achieve proper buoyancy and balance
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The DC motors generate sufficient thrust
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The remote control circuits respond correctly
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The waterproofing techniques (wax, tape, plastic enclosures) hold under real conditions
The objective is not only to test functionality, but also to encourage students to identify the physical phenomena at play, analyze unexpected behaviors, and propose design improvements — exactly as real engineers do during prototyping.
Following the tests, students will complete a post-workshop questionnaire, similar to the initial diagnostic form they completed on the first day. This will allow mentors to measure how much the participants’ conceptual understanding has improved — particularly regarding forces, buoyancy, electromagnetism, circuits, and mechanical motion. This evaluation will serve as both a pedagogical tool and an impact assessment for the Underwater Explorers program.
The session will close with a collective reflection, where students will share their challenges, discoveries, and what they enjoyed most about building a functional underwater robot from scratch. This final conversation aims to reinforce scientific confidence, highlight the value of perseverance, and celebrate the creativity and teamwork that defined the entire project.
This workshop is not just about seeing submarines move — it is about confirming that hands-on STEM education empowers young learners to think critically, solve problems, and understand the physics that shape the world around them.
Barranquilla, Atlantico, Colombia