Introducing Social Robots in a Project-Based Learning Environment: Adaption and Impact on Early Adolescents (Poster 36)

• In Event: AERA Virtual Poster Session 4
  In Poster Session: Technology and Social Spaces

Abstract

This field-based case study analyzed student reactions to a social robot (Softbank’s Pepper) in a project-based learning unit on robots. Over the course of the ten-week unit, 25 middle school students interacted with the robot on a daily basis. Students were similar to a comparable sample of Swedish students in their comfort around robots. While limited by the need for extensive technical support, the robot functioned effectively as an object of discovery and appeared to provide students with insights into human-robot systems. Students at this age incorporated the robot into their social world, struggling with issues like gendering the robot, defining its purpose, and using the robot to engage with each other in interactions around social identity.

Authors

• Gerald K. LeTendre, Pennsylvania State University

• Raisa Gray, Pennsylvania State University