A Sandbox for Teaching and Learning in CI for Pre-University and Undergraduate Students at IEEE CEC 2023 and FUZZ-IEEE 2023

Organizers: Chang-Shing Lee, Guilherme N. DeSouza, Alexander Dockhorn

Yusuke Nojima, Marek Reformat, Li-Wei Ko, and Chun-Rong Huang

Supported by the IEEE CIS Education Portal Subcommittee and Task Forces on Competitions & Web Intelligence of IEEE CIS FSTC

I. Competition Website @ IEEE CEC 2023 and FUZZ-IEEE 2023

https://oase.nutn.edu.tw/cec2023-ciworkshop/ and https://sites.google.com/asap.nutn.edu.tw/ieee-cec-2023/

https://oase.nutn.edu.tw/fuzz2023-cicompetition/ and https://sites.google.com/asap.nutn.edu.tw/fuzz-ieee-2023

II. Scope and Topics

In 2023, the IEEE Computational Intelligence Society (CIS) Education Portal Subcommittee collaborated with the organizers of IEEE CEC 2023 and FUZZ-IEEE 2023 to introduce a Computational Intelligence (CI) model inspired by the Heart Sutra for co-learning between humans and machines. This initiative took place at the Sandbox for Teaching and Learning in CI for Pre-University and Undergraduate Students at IEEE CEC 2023 on July 2 and FUZZ-IEEE 2023 on August 13. CI encompasses the theory, design, application, and development of biologically and linguistically motivated computational paradigms. The three pillars of CI, namely Fuzzy Systems (FSs), Evolutionary Computation (EC), and Neural Networks (NNs), play a crucial role in developing successful intelligent systems.

During the CI Sandbox event, the following activities occurred: 1) Humans and machines co-learned CI by following the six steps. 2) FSs use human language as a source of inspiration, allowing learners to construct a human knowledge model based on acquired domain knowledge. 3) EC, inspired by biological evolution, enabled learners to optimize human intelligence (HI) and human-centered logic using PSO machine learning experience. 4) NNs drew inspiration from the human brain, combining HI and human-centered logic with the experience gained from the Google Teachable Machine. 5) Learners applied their acquired knowledge to real-world applications.

III. Summary Reports and Results

More than 150 students, teachers, and parents, both in-person and online, took part in this event on July 2 and August 13. These participants come from Taiwan, Japan, Germany, Hong Kong, the USA, Korea, and India.

§ Summary Report on the event at IEEE CEC 2023 is as follows: (1) Category A: Invitation and Demonstration / Elementary School Students (Five online teams and One hybrid team), (2) Category B: Invitation and Demonstration / Senior High-School / Undergraduate / Graduate Students (Four hybrid teams), and (3) Registration Situation: 63 Entries Registration for the event and people from Taiwan: 48, Japan: 4, USA: 8, Hong Kong: 1, and Germany: 2.

§ Summary Report on the event at FUZZ-IEEE 2023: (1) 7 Entries Registration: Four teams registered for the Elementary School Group and Three teams registered for the High School/ University Group, (2) 6 Entries finished the competition and entered the Final: Four teams from Elementary School Group and Two teams from High School/ University Group. The competition results are as follows: (1) Elementary School Group: Winner is Group 3 (https://youtu.be/KStn6JPTGDQ), First runner-up is Group 1 (https://youtu.be/o1WsTZ_D2Xc), and Second runner-up is Group 2 (https://youtu.be/Ax35zOU2g54). (2) High School / University Group: Winner is Group 6 (https://youtu.be/3JT_-cj7r9o) and First runner-up is Group 5 (https://youtu.be/ns3XvrxVvPs).

IV. Feedback from the Learners

The feedback from the young participants of Taiwan, Japan, Korea, and Hong Kong is positive, for example:

Elementary school student: 1) Yung-Shen Tu (Dong-Guang Primary School, Taiwan) said, ‘The Q&A of the competition trains my real-time response and expression ability.’ 2) Yi-Yun Wang (Dong-Guang Primary School, Taiwan) expressed, ‘This activity gives me a complete learning experience in machine learning, from collecting data, training the model, and to applying it in daily life, which is very interesting and challenging for me.’

Junior high school student: Patricia Hsieh (Korrnell Ritz Academy, Taiwan) remarked, ‘This competition not only helped us learn CI more but also taught us how to work in a team. In this generation, AI is essential, and I plan to continue participating in this activity to learn more about AI.’

Senior-high school student: 1) Lonz Lee (La Salle College, Hong Kong) commented, ‘This was a field of AI that I hadn’t discovered or explored before, so the sandbox broadened my understanding of what AI is about. I believe it is beneficial for students to come into contact with AI from a young age to develop their logical thinking and programming skills. These skills will aid them in their learning journey, whether or not they ultimately choose to pursue a career in computer science.’ 2) Po-Tang Huang (Deguang Catholic Senior High School, Taiwan) mentioned, ‘I learned the knowledge of fuzzy inference that I had never encountered before and understood the importance of teamwork.’

Undergraduate student: 1) Byeong Jae Kwak (Hanyang University, Korea) mentioned ‘I learned that IEEE is dedicated to offering educational opportunities to young students. I am very proud to have participated in this IEEE international event.’ 2) Che-Chia Liang (National Cheng Kung University, Taiwan) stated, ‘The event at IEEE CEC 2023 provided me with the basic concepts and applications of CI, which was an introductory experience for me. However, the FUZZ-IEEE 2023 event allowed me to explore the latest theories and understand the newest technologies. I am filled with anticipation for the future.’

Graduate student: 1) Takeru Konishi (Osaka Metropolitan University, Japan) shared, ‘Through my participation in this event, I gained valuable experience in learning and collaborating with students from different countries, leading to the generation of novel ideas. I plan to use this valuable experience to foster my personal growth in the future.’ 2) Chih-Yu Chen (National University of Tainan, Taiwan) said, ‘I served as a tutor at these three events to assist the participants in learning CI basic concepts and to guide them on how to practice their real-world applications. In my view, organizing such events not only enriches participants’ CI knowledge but also contributes to my personal growth through their valuable feedback.’ 3) Pei-Ying Wu (National University of Tainan, Taiwan) mentioned ‘This event provides me with an opportunity to interact with students from other countries, understand their culture, and broaden my international vision.’

Elementary school teacher: Wei-Chih Chen (Dong-Guang Primary School, Taiwan) pointed out ‘This event not only offers young students a valuable opportunity to learn about CI and machine learning but also enables teachers to introduce CI and AI concepts in their classrooms. The young students who participate in this event receive guidance from the professors at the competition, providing them with a unique and horizon-expanding experience. Hopefully, this innovative learning model can be extended to other countries.’

Overall, the event proved to be a valuable learning experience for the participants, as it significantly enhanced their understanding of CI in this new generation. They also viewed it as an excellent opportunity to gain knowledge related to CI. Finally, the organizers hope to continue organizing such events in the future and look forward to seeing the participants again in Yokohama, Japan, from June 30 to July 5, 2024.


Participants attending the opening ceremony together with Jim Keller (IEEE CIS President) @ IEEE CEC 2023 in the USA on July 2, 2023.	Winner of Elementary School Group @ FUZZ-IEEE 2023 on August 13.

Participants attending the opening ceremony together @ FUZZ-IEEE 2023 in Korea on August 13, 2023.