Robot Revolution: Intelligence in, Intelligence Out
Greg Thompson · T.H.E. Journal Technological Horizons in Education · 2016
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] THE FAMILIAR GARBAGE in/garbage out axiom has long been a mantra of computer programmers, nowhere is the cause-and-effect principle more apparent than when working with robots. Faced with the three-dimensional movements (and sometimes audio vocalizations) of robots, students across the grade spectrum can see the direct results of their input. the hope of introducing robotics in younger age groups, the Parkland School District in Allentown, PA, aimed to spread its considerable secondary grade success to the primary grades. This year at the district's Fogelsville Elementary School in Breinigsville, PA, media specialist Samantha A. Edwards piloted a maker space largely devoted to robotics. Starting with Dash Dot Robots, Edwards helped K-5 students learn the basics of computer programming/coding. Now we can integrate those robots into any curricular piece, she said, and that's powerful. The added dimension has educators counting the possibilities. Robotics storytelling? Edwards is doing it. Using Lego WeDo classroom sets, she created a publishing section in her maker space dedicated to storytelling. Students made an alligator [robot], Edwards explained. they made a story board, from that point we used another Lego product--the story visualizer software--and they created a story, scene by scene. Then we hook it up to the computer program the robot [alligator] to chomp down on something. use coding here, they put it into the story visualizer software create a digital story.... this, students have that motivation to be able to share. don't even recognize they are giving a speech. The trial-and-error ethos is infectious, Edwards has seen it even in young students. During one after-school session, students worked for hours to perfect a robotics movement sequence. I said, 'Guys, this is it. Parents want you home,' Edwards said with a laugh. They did some fixes. know the word 'debugging,' they know it's OK to make mistakes. fixed it, they were successful. Parents loved the experience. One parent said, 'My daughter didn't believe at the beginning that she could code.' This experience has given her the confidence to be successful do more, now she is trying to build her own robot in the fourth grade. Edwards' district has recognized the value in the expanded robotics program. Additional funding through the Parkland Education Foundation will provide robotics maker spaces in every elementary school in the Parkland district next year. The additional investment may make coding/programming second nature by the time high school rolls around. People can't believe have kindergartners who can tell you what algorithms are what debugging means, enthused Edwards. With Ozobots, for example, you can take markers teach students coding robotics. had kindergartners use the markers to draw a triangle, then they took the robot programmed it to travel around the shape of a triangle. Dip Your Robotic Toe Administrators in rural districts who are looking to boost robotics throughout their schools need not despair. Stephanie Miller, superintendent principal of Congress Elementary School District No. 17 in Congress, AZ, knows what it's like to get started, she has had success so far. You just need to dip your toe in, she said. Begin with the fundamentals. Enlisting the aid of some key tools such as Defined STEM can help teachers apply robotics, particularly in the context of project-based learning integration across the curriculum. Using rubrics provided by Defined STEM, Suzanne Sims, technology specialist in the Congress Elementary School District, designed an open-ended unit on wind turbines. They could use their robotics skills in this unit, she said. …