This chapter focuses on the design and implementation of coding, programming, and robotics activities in real-world classroom conditions in early childhood education that foster computational thinking and creativity. The study extends the author's experience in designing learning environments through experimentation, exploration, expression, construction, meaning negotiation, and collaboration. The author tries to gain further insight into the potential of implementing unplugged activities, robotics systems, and programming environments in the context of multi-disciplinary, hands-on activities. Using a variety of tools, strategies, and methods as well as qualitative approaches employed in case studies of classroom practice during Afternoon Robotics Club courses, the findings highlight the overall process indicating some special features that contribute to or cause difficulty in the formation of an effective learning experience. Special issues of interest, key aspects, solutions, and recommendations, as well as future research directions, are discussed.
This chapter focuses on the design and implementation of coding, programming, and robotics activities in real-world classroom conditions in early childhood education that foster computational thinking and creativity. The study extends the author's experience in designing learning environments through experimentation, exploration, expression, construction, meaning negotiation, and collaboration. The author tries to gain further insight into the potential of implementing unplugged activities, robotics systems, and programming environments in the context of multi-disciplinary, hands-on activities. Using a variety of tools, strategies, and methods as well as qualitative approaches employed in case studies of classroom practice during Afternoon Robotics Club courses, the findings highlight the overall process indicating some special features that contribute to or cause difficulty in the formation of an effective learning experience. Special issues of interest, key aspects, solutions, and recommendations, as well as future research directions, are discussed.
This chapter focuses on the design and implementation of robotics activities in authentic classroom conditions in secondary education. It suggests that robotics can provide a powerful educational vehicle for guiding high school students toward learning in 21st century. It presents a constructionist approach to foster computational thinking and creativity by engaging in robotics and programming activities in real-world classroom. More specifically, this chapter presents teaching interventions that have been implemented in real conditions to high school students during robotics courses at Arsakeia Schools Psychikou in Athens, Greece. It describes robotics activities employing the Edison educational robotics system. Main features of teaching interventions concerning the utilization of Edison robot, digital learning environments, and unplugged activities in the classroom focused on 21st century skills, computational thinking, and creativity development as well as findings, solutions, recommendations, and future research directions are discussed.
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