Creating An All-Inclusive STEAM Classroom For All Ages With Robotics

Robotics can be a surefire way to teach STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) to students of all ages. While covering a vast range of fundamental STEAM concepts, robotics simultaneously assists in the development of soft skills such as critical thinking, problem-solving, and cooperation. Robotics has been an integral part of STEM education since the mid-'80s, and we have developed the stunning capability to apply engineering, math, and science skills to better advantage our students (Bartholomew, 2015).

Learning for All Ages

An amazing feature of robotics education is that it can be developed for students of any age, as students advance and progress, so too will their robots. As young as kindergarten, kids can start understanding coding with robots like Botley, a coding robot designed to help young children start to understand coding and engineering. Botley uses cards and a remote control to gamify coding to combine open-ended play with critical thinking (LearningResourcesInc, 2017). As students get older, robotics kits like LEGO Spike, Mindstorms, and VEX Robots, can be used through elementary and middle school (Bartholomew, 2015). With these kits, they have the tools to build and code robots that can perform thousands of tasks, from autonomously following a target, to competing at tasks like shooting projectiles into goals. When students reach Highschool, we can give them the tools to create robots from scratch. If we can provide students with the right tools, they have unlimited potential to develop anything they put their minds to. From competing in robotics competitions like FIRST to finding ways to help their communities, students can take what they have learned in the classroom and apply it to their lives.

Fostering an Environment of Creativity

Robotics can quickly captivate students' attention because it gives them the freedom to build and create new things, learning even when things go wrong. Research shows “the more things students touch, the more they think and reflect and the more ideas they then can generate” (Yang, 2020). The hands-on aspect of robotics keeps students directly engaged in their robots. Students learn that oftentimes, the first code they try will not work as well as they want it to, leading them to try repeatedly, learning from their previous mistakes, and learning that it is okay to make these mistakes. Reiser (2012) explains that learners are more motivated to learn when they are triggered to ask questions that further their knowledge. Constantly building, improving, and engineering, students must hypothesize what will and will not work and constantly question ways to improve their robots and the code for robots. When students start making robots at competitive levels, or with specific tasks in mind, they must become highly engaged in the design, construction, and development of their robots. When offered correctly, robotics education allows the students to think freely and open-endedly about where they want to take their projects.

A Multi-Disciplinary Learning Experience

The American education system often splits up the subjects which we value most. We have a class for math, a separate class for science, one for art, manufacturing, etc. While it is understandable that we split these classes up, when applied properly, robotics education can help students get a more thorough understanding of all these subjects, while also developing soft skills like problem-solving solving and teamwork. A key aspect of robotics is coding and software development. While coding is one of the fundamental 21st-century century skills that will prepare students for the real world, it also helps in teaching the fundamentals of many mathematical theories and concepts (Wang, 2020). Personally, when I was in high school, I struggled in understanding the ways many equations worked, but as I learned how to code, I saw those theories applied to the software I was creating. This helped me further understand how these theories worked, as I could see them running in my games and applications. Furthermore, assembling robotics requires logic, measurements, and applying scientific methods to properly achieve their goals (Karp, 2014).

References

Bartholomew, S., & Furse, J. (2015). Successfully Integrating Robotics into Your Curriculum. Techniques: Connecting Education & Careers, 90(7), 14–17. Retrieved from EBSCOHost: https://login.oclc.fullsail.edu/login?url=https://search-ebscohost-com.oclc.fullsail.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=110363228&site=ehost-live

FRCTeamsGlobal. (2021). About First Robotics Competition (2021). YouTube. YouTube. Retrieved January 19, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jd29kzjclV0

LearningResourcesInc. (2017). Botley Quick Start! YouTube. YouTube. Retrieved January 21, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHgtD7ZGpr8&t=50s

Karp, T., Gale, R., Tan, M. (George), & Burnham, G. (2014). Hosting a Pipeline of K-12 Robotics Competitions at a College of Engineering - A Review of Benefits and Challenges. International Journal for Service Learning in Engineering, 9, 406–423. https://doi-org.oclc.fullsail.edu/10.24908/ijsle.v0i0.5560

Reiser, R.A., Dempsey, J.V. (2018). Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology (4th ed.). New York, NY: Pearson Education.

Wang, L., & Chiang, F. (2020). Integrating novel engineering strategies into STEM education: APP design and an assessment of engineering‐related attitudes. British Journal of Educational Technology, 51(6), 1938–1959. https://doi-org.oclc.fullsail.edu/10.1111/bjet.13031

Yang, Y., Long, Y., Sun, D., Aalst, J., & Cheng, S. (2020). Fostering students’ creativity via educational robotics: An investigation of teachers’ pedagogical practices based on teacher interviews. British Journal of Educational Technology, 51(5), 1826–1842. https://doi-org.oclc.fullsail.edu/10.1111/bjet.12985