Teaching STEM with robotics
Purvee Chauhan, Vikram Kapila · 2023
The advancing pace of scientific discoveries and technological innovations necessitates engaging and preparing students to pursue scientific and engineering disciplines. Thus, there is an increased demand for novel solutions to introduce science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) in schools. Use of educational technologies, for example, robotics, to embed meaningful and motivating engineering and technology contexts in science and math courses constitutes a compelling strategy as it is capable of stimulating engaging learning experiences, providing conceptual understanding, and cultivating the application of new learning to activities of personal and community relevance. Unfortunately, the integration and implementation of high-quality STEM learning experiences continue to be hampered due to two critical challenges: (1) lack of curricula that embed contemporary technologies to foster authentic and deep learning of STEM disciplines and (2) inadequate preparation and training of teachers to use technologies effectively for STEM education. To surmount the aforementioned twin challenges for successfully integrating educational robotics in science and math learning, a recent research effort performed design-based research to develop novel robotics-based STEM curriculum and a collaborative teacher professional development model. Through iterative design–enact–refine cycles, the professional development program empowered teachers to engage in hands-on experiential learning activities and collaborate with researchers to co-develop a curriculum that purposefully interweaves the four disciplines of STEM with educational robotics in a pedagogically efficient manner. The research project was founded on well-established theoretical frameworks including technological, pedagogical, and content knowledge (TPACK), 5E instructional model, and project-based learning (PBL), among others, and produced positive results in learning, engagement, and motivation among both teachers and students. This chapter illustrates the overarching aspects of the projects’ design, implementation activities, and outcomes.