Learning about, from, and with Robots: Students' Perspectives

Abstract

Robotics technology is expected to alter many aspects of people's lives as well as the field of education. The following study will be concerned with three scenarios in which robots were related to student learning, i. e. learning about, from, and with robots. The analysis of the interview data, garnered from 85 students, allows for an understanding of students' perceptions and attitudes towards robots and learning: (a) generally, the younger the students, the more enthusiastic they were about learning about robots; (b) robots were predominantly perceived as being male or having no sex; (c) the students found it possible to learn something from robots, though this itself did not suggest that they regarded teaching robots as teachers; (d) an element critically lacking in robots, which allowed them to act as qualified teachers, was the 'emotion' generally embedded in human behaviors and communications; and (e) in relation to the scenario of learning with robots, the students were expecting the robots to perform roles such as private tuition or that of learning tools rather than companions or collaborators.

Windfield

“…Educational robots conceived to teach these subjects were classically designed as facilitators in learning the subject through their related inherent qualities such as programmability and sensor/actuator hardware; in other words, they played the tool role identified by [26]. [38] calls this approach "robots for education", and points out that the method can potentially be used to teach subjects of any kind, while also acknowledging its clear historical focus on STEM. [5,16] provide reviews of studies that target such topics and the devices used for this purpose; individual programmable mobile robots (often with a differential drive for locomotion) and programmable robotic construction kits seem to be the two major choices for the tool approach.…”

“…Since Papert, many attempts were made to introduce robots in education (with subjects well beyond programming or robotics such as language) but mainly stayed limited to extra-curricular activities. The reasons for this particular limitation can be found in several studies on school teachers' opinions on robotics (such as [38,19,26,17]): Besides viewing robots as expensive, resource demanding and a potential source of distraction, teachers want the technology to adapt to their practice and not the opposite. For better acceptance, such technologies should primarily target helping them achieve their duty more efficiently.…”

Towards a Synthetic Tutor Assistant: The EASEL Project and its Architecture

“…Moreover, educational robots can be flexible, as they can assume the role of mere tools [3], peers [4,5] or even tutors [6]. Although the preferred characterization is not yet conclusive [7], when used as a tutor or a peer, thus implying a continuous robot-learner interaction, the robot's design and behavior become a crucial aspect [6,8,9]. Typically, robots in education are employed in scenarios ranging from technical education [10] (usually related to robotics or technology), to science [11] and learning of a foreign language [5], just to cite a few -see also [12] for a recent review and discussion about the use of robots in education.…”

Mississippi BEST Robotics: An Analysis of Impact and Outcomes on Student Performance and Perceptions towards Earning STEM Degrees

“…Investments in outreach and student development has led to common STEM activities and programs that promote active learning through hands-on activities, inquiry-based learning, curriculum supplements, engaged role models, and teacher involvement inside and outside of K-12 classrooms. [2][3][4] Such investments are helping the U.S. to produce students with an academic proficiency in STEM.…”