A total of 265 pupils, from both public and private schools across the UAE, will represent the UAE National Team during the three-day International World Robot Olympiad (WRO), which begins on Friday at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (Adnec). This was announced by the Abu Dhabi Education Council (Adec), which revealed that the teams include 24 students from Abu Dhabi City, 19 from Al Ain, 23 from Dubai, five from Fujairah, seven from Madinat Zayed, seven from Ras Al Khaimah, and 11 from Ruwais. An additional six teams from special needs centres will participate in a special exhibition category hosted by the UAE WRO Organising committee. This will be the first time that the WRO, now in its eighth edition, will take place in the Middle East. Symposium Over 1,000 students from 38 countries are expected to participate in the event. Alongside the competition, Adec will be hosting the 4th International Symposium on Robotics in Education on Friday and Saturday. The symposium will provide a forum for discussing the latest advances, improvements and challenges for robotics and its significant role in education. The WRO is one of the largest international robotic competitions for pupils, who compete in teams to assemble robots that will participate in challenges to solve a specific problem. The WRO platform allows students to learn and apply their knowledge in science, engineering, math and computer programming to build an intelligent robot. The WRO competition utilises Lego Mindstorms Education kits, which utilise Lego pieces and motors, sensors and microprocessors.