Abstract:
The integration of robotics and programming is crucial in children’s technological education. Since 2016, Finnish elementary schools have included programming in their curriculum, providing students with opportunities to develop logical thinking and programming skills through educational robots. At the QTrobot station, students design and program quizzes using the QTrobot Visual Studio editor, with the robot reading questions aloud and students responding via tablet.
Feedback from the co-learning robot workshop was positive, with students gaining robotics and programming knowledge and facilitators enhancing their instructional skills. However, some students desired more in-depth learning and found the workshop duration too short. Initial hesitancy, especially among teenagers, suggested a need for longer workshops and background music to improve comfort.
Students appreciated the autonomy and creativity in choosing stations and tasks, though not attending all stations was a drawback. Despite some technological issues, these challenges provided facilitators with valuable problem-solving experience. Adapting tasks, such as showcasing pre-programmed robot features, proved more engaging for students.
This study underscores the benefits and challenges of incorporating robotics and programming in elementary education, highlighting the importance of adaptable, hands-on, interactive teaching methods.
Reference:
Lammi, Hilkka. “COLLABORATIVE LEARNING OF ROBOTICS WITH ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND UNIVERSITY STUDENTS.” (2023).