Telepresence robots to reduce school absenteeism among children with cancer, neuromuscular diseases, or anxiety—the expectations of children and teachers: A qualitative study in Denmark

Weibel, Mette; Skoubo, Sofie; Handberg, Charlotte; Bertel, Lykke Brogaard; Steinrud, Nonni Camilla; Schmiegelow, Kjeld; Hallström, Inger; Larsen, Hanne Bækgaard

doi:10.1016/j.chbr.2023.100280

Cited by 3 publications

(10 citation statements)

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“…Mette Weibel https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1810-2334 Lykke Brogaard Bertel https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1460-2905 F I G U R E A 1 Functionalities of AV1. Adapted from Weibel & Skoubo et al (2023).…”

Section: Orcidmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Studies show how using new telepresence robot technology meets with scepticism among class teachers (Gallon, 2019;Johannessen et al, 2023;Weibel et al, 2023). Sceptics expect the technology to have additional features (Weibel et al, 2023) and see them as a threat to the ideology of being physically present in school and bounded institutions (Johannessen et al, 2023). However, Weibel et al (2023) show that teachers are willing to allocate additional resources to encourage telepresence robot usage, as they see them as potentially instrumental in reducing absenteeism in homebound children (Weibel et al, 2023).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Telepresence robotic technology support for social connectedness during treatment of children with cancer

et al. 2023

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Children with cancer experience fragmented school attendance during treatment. Telepresence robots that connect them with school during treatment periods were explored through an intervention involving participant observation followed by semi‐structured interviews from 2020–22 with children with cancer, their class teachers, and classmates. We used an abductive approach, inspired by the Agential Realism theory and Situational Analysis. The use of telepresence robots in education enables hospitalized children to actively participate in real‐time social activities with their classmates. However, consistent monitoring is necessary to ensure the success of this integration process as the classmates can lose interest in providing support to a child with cancer.

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Section: Orcidmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Telepresence robotic technology support for social connectedness during treatment of children with cancer

et al. 2023

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“…Yet, these services do not necessarily support students' social needs. The connection to their school community is easily lost (6) which makes returning to school more challenging (2). One way to support the educational and social needs of students and avoid social isolation is to introduce information technology-based communication tools into schools.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Especially since the mid-2010s, there have been pilot studies on prototypes and the implementation of telepresence robots or avatar technologies in schools (3,4,6). There are mobile videoconferencing technologies showing the student controlling the telepresence robot on a monitor (3,(5)(6)(7)(8)(9) and stationary systems that do not transmit the video of the student (1,2,(10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(15). First studies have explored expectations of students and teachers (2), student and teacher experiences, and the potential and challenges for social inclusion (3,4,16).…”

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Staying connected: implementing avatar robots at schools in Germany and Japan

Spoden,

Ema

2024

Front. Digit. Health

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IntroductionWith advancements in communication technologies and internet connectivity, avatar robots for children who cannot attend school in person due to illness or disabilities have become more widespread. Introducing these technologies to the classroom aims to offer possibilities of social and educational inclusion. While implementation is still at an experimental level, several of these avatars have already been introduced as a marketable service. However, various obstacles impede widespread acceptance.MethodsIn our explorative qualitative case study we conducted semi-structured interviews with eight individuals involved in the implementation of the avatar robots AV1 in Germany and eleven participants involved with implementing OriHime in Japan. We analyzed and compared implementation processes, application areas, access and eligibility, and the potential and limitations of avatars at schools.ResultsWe identified structural similarities and differences in both countries. In the German cases the target is defined as temporary use for children who cannot attend school in person because of childhood illness, with the clear goal of returning to school. Whereas in Japan OriHime is also implemented for children with physical or developmental disabilities, or who cannot attend school in person for other reasons.DiscussionOur study suggests that avatar technologies bear high potential for children to stay socially and educationally connected. Yet, structures need establishing that grant equal access to avatar technologies. These include educational board regulations, budgets for funding avatar technologies and making them accessible to the public, and privacy protection standards that are adequate, yet do not create implementation hurdles that are too high. Furthermore, guidelines or training sessions on technical, educational and psychosocial aspects of including avatar technologies in the classroom for teachers are important for successful implementation. Since our Japanese cases suggest that expanding the area of application beyond childhood illness is promising, further research on the benefits for different groups is needed.

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Robots2school: telepresence-mediated learning in the hybrid classroom – experiences in education support for children during cancer treatment: a qualitative study

Weibel,

Bergdahl,

Hallström

et al. 2023

Educ Inf Technol

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Children with cancer experience recurring hospitalizations and isolation during treatment, which affect their school attendance. This study explores experiences of children with cancer, their classmates, and teachers with using the telepresence robot as a learning mediator in the hybrid classroom during treatment periods. 31 children with cancer (aged 7–17 years), 30 teachers, and 118 classmates participated in interviews and 19 h of participant observations were undertaken in nine classrooms. The Agential Realism Theory and Situational Analysis framed the data analysis. There was a single overarching theme, “Telepresence robot didactic,“ and five sub-themes (Telepresence mediated learning, school-home collaboration, hybrid robot teaching, intra-actions in class, and inclusive spatiality). This study advocates the complexity of telepresence robot didactics, emphasizing that numerous human and other factors must intra-act and work simultaneously to achieve optimal learning conditions for children during cancer treatment. This includes considerations such as modality availability for the remote child; the teacher’s understanding of telepresence robot didactic and hybrid learning; the classmate’s ability to involve the remote child in groupwork; the child’s own treatment protocol, the robot’s functionalities, and spatiality in the class. Strategies for use and the systematic surveillance of telepresence robots are needed to ensure that children during cancer treatment do not lag in academic achievement. This study proposes that children with cancer can continue participating in class while hospitalized or isolated and consequently reduce social and academic setbacks.

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Telepresence robots to reduce school absenteeism among children with cancer, neuromuscular diseases, or anxiety—the expectations of children and teachers: A qualitative study in Denmark

Cited by 3 publications

References 33 publications

Telepresence robotic technology support for social connectedness during treatment of children with cancer

Telepresence robotic technology support for social connectedness during treatment of children with cancer

Staying connected: implementing avatar robots at schools in Germany and Japan

Robots2school: telepresence-mediated learning in the hybrid classroom – experiences in education support for children during cancer treatment: a qualitative study

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