Engagement in Learning Through Design and Experimentation with Robots

Abstract

In this research we characterize students’ engagement in learning in robotic environments and factors that influence engagement. We observed robotics activities of a group of 20 eleventh graders from a technological school, majoring in mechanical engineering. We searched for repeated learning behaviors and elicited patterns of student’s engagement. For the analysis of these patterns we applied Goldin’s theory of engagement structures. To determine the factors affecting students’ engagement, we took teachers’ explanations of possible reasons behind the observed students’ behaviors. The explanations and student interviews were used to determine factors of student engagement. Our study explores and extends the group of known engagement structures related to learning in robotic environment. The knowledge of factors of student engagement can facilitate selecting proper strategies of robotics education.