research-article

“It will surely fall”: Exploring Teachers’ Perspectives on Commercial Robots for Preschoolers

Authors:

Ewelina Bakala,

Ana Cristina Pires,

Gonzalo Tejera,

Juan Pablo HourcadeAuthors Info & Claims

GoodIT '23: Proceedings of the 2023 ACM Conference on Information Technology for Social Good

Pages 477 - 486

https://doi.org/10.1145/3582515.3609570

Published: 06 September 2023 Publication History

Abstract

This paper presents a study with kindergarten teachers to assess the advantages, challenges and opportunities of commercial robots to teach computational thinking to young children. Recent studies have highlighted the potential benefits of introducing CT concepts at an early stage. Robots are an engaging and effective educational tool for teaching CT to young children, providing hands-on and interactive learning experiences. Entirely tangible robotic environments have successfully connected the abstract world of CT with the concrete world of preschoolers. Children can program robots by pressing buttons, drawing the path or using code cards. However, there is limited research on the use of commercial robots in preschool classrooms. This research aims to address this gap by investigating preschool teachers’ perspectives on the advantages, challenges, and opportunities associated with using commercial robots in the context of kindergarten classrooms. We contribute with a list of practical, pedagogical and motivational aspects that should be taken into account while evaluating robots and design considerations to build robotic environments for kindergarten classrooms.

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Cited By

Matthews SNicholas MPaatsch LKervin LWyeth P(2025)Wobblies: Designing Intentional Playthings with Young ChildrenProceedings of the Nineteenth International Conference on Tangible, Embedded, and Embodied Interaction10.1145/3689050.3705972(1-7)Online publication date: 4-Mar-2025
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3689050.3705972
Matthews SNicholas MPaatsch LKervin LWyeth P(2025)Social and Curious: Lessons in Designing Digital Manipulatives for Young ChildrenInternational Journal of Child-Computer Interaction10.1016/j.ijcci.2025.100725(100725)Online publication date: Feb-2025
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijcci.2025.100725

Index Terms

“It will surely fall”: Exploring Teachers’ Perspectives on Commercial Robots for Preschoolers
1. Human-centered computing
  1. Human computer interaction (HCI)
    1. Interactive systems and tools
2. Social and professional topics
  1. User characteristics
    1. Age
      1. Children

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cover image ACM Conferences

GoodIT '23: Proceedings of the 2023 ACM Conference on Information Technology for Social Good

September 2023

560 pages

ISBN:9798400701160

DOI:10.1145/3582515

Copyright © 2023 ACM.

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Publication History

Published: 06 September 2023

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Research-article
Research
Refereed limited

Funding Sources

Agencia Nacional de Investigación e Innovación, Uruguay
Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Portugal
Portuguese Recovery and Resilience Program (PRR), IAPMEI / ANI / FCT

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GoodIT '23

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SIGCAS

GoodIT '23: ACM International Conference on Information Technology for Social Good

September 6 - 8, 2023

Lisbon, Portugal

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Cited By

Matthews SNicholas MPaatsch LKervin LWyeth P(2025)Wobblies: Designing Intentional Playthings with Young ChildrenProceedings of the Nineteenth International Conference on Tangible, Embedded, and Embodied Interaction10.1145/3689050.3705972(1-7)Online publication date: 4-Mar-2025
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3689050.3705972
Matthews SNicholas MPaatsch LKervin LWyeth P(2025)Social and Curious: Lessons in Designing Digital Manipulatives for Young ChildrenInternational Journal of Child-Computer Interaction10.1016/j.ijcci.2025.100725(100725)Online publication date: Feb-2025
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijcci.2025.100725

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