Students from Wareham Middle School's engineering club earned certificates of participation while one club team, team "A.M.C.," took home an innovation award at a competition for remotely operated vehicles at Massachusetts Maritime Academy on Saturday, April 28.

The competition was hosted by Marine Advanced Technology Education, a partnership of educational institutions which holds 20 regional remotely operated vehicles (ROV) contests as well as international contests in Canada, Hong Kong, and Scotland.

The Wareham Middle School team put in months of hard work designing their ROVs in preparation for the competition, said Eryn Capizzo, a teacher in charge of the school suspension classroom who along with 7th grade math teacher Julie Walker is a co-adviser of the club. The competition is intended to help students develop technical, problem solving, critical thinking, and teamwork skills.

Student teams from middle schools, high schools, home schools, community colleges, and universities participate in the events, which consist of different “classes” that vary depending on the sophistication of the ROVs and the requirements of the competition.

In addition to being fun and educational, the competitions connect students and educators with employers and working professionals from marine industries and highlight marine-related career opportunities, Capizzo said.