Modular Platform for Teaching Robotics

Abstract

The Fourth Industrial Revolution causes changes in the economy and shifts the job market demand towards workforce with high technical skills. To keep an undisturbed economic growth we have to encourage more young people to develop competences in STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics). This has met with a response from some education systems which have prepared special programmes focusing on developing technical skills among students. One of the desired field is robotics, which involves constructing and programming. We have already conducted some workshops for high school students in this subjects and we would like to find the correct teaching tools to attract primary school students. Our idea is to create a modular platform, which elements could be used as black boxes, to teach robotics to young children. We have noticed that Arduino based kits are a bit too complicated and we decided to test a LEGO Technic set equipped with an external microcontroller. We have verified the interest level of children and the difficulty and time needed for a teacher to master the whole teaching platform. According to our study, LEGO attracts students much more than Arduino and is easier in operation and less time consuming during classes for teachers.