Coping with a virtual and abstract reality has become part of everyday life. Therefore, perceptions of what will constitute everyday life experiences for future generations are next to impossible to predict. One way of preparing young children for such a future is the implementation of teaching towards digital competence in curricula around the…

Recent research emphasizes the need for a more sustained interaction of schools with universities and research institutions. For example, informal after-school programs integrated into the school curriculum can provide opportunities for meaningful interaction with researchers in active learning settings. At the physics department of University of…

It is common to use anthropomorphic labels when talking about technology, for example describing some robots and phones as smart, thinking and talking. This article describes a workshop in which students considered ways that words such as 'hearing', 'smart' and 'intelligence' might change in meaning when they are used in the context of robotics…

This article describes an early childhood lesson that integrated science, technology, art, social studies, math, and language. The authors' students compared robots, programmed and created stories with robots, and became robot-inventors. They also imagined how their robot-creations might impact the world--a core idea related to Science, Technology…

In the field of technology and engineering education, educators are limited by their inability to predict what is coming; as the saying goes, they are preparing their students for jobs that do not even exist yet. Two adaptive approaches can help prepare students for this uncertainty: (1) teaching broad skills that can be applied in new situations;…

In this paper, we use our qualitative research notes and observations to portray a model for integrated STEM education and summarise primary school students' typical and recurring ways in which they engaged with each new robot. The purpose of this paper is two-fold: first, to unpack key elements of the Australian Curriculum: Technologies in order…

In this article, we explain an organizational system for the new LEGO Education WeDo 2.0 Core Set used in 4-H robotics; in school enrichment, afterschool, and other youth robotics programs; and by hobbyists. The system presented is for organizing WeDo parts into a translucent parts tray that includes part names and numbers. The article provides…

Innovative education is a higher training requirement for education in the period of social transformation. It needs the education to cultivate talents with innovative consciousness and ability for the development of society. High school is critical for facilitating students' innovative consciousness, innovative thinking, and innovative ability…

This article describes an introductory computational thinking (CT) lesson that was implemented into five educational technology classes at a large university in the southern United States. A total of 88 undergraduate and graduate students participated in the lesson. The project was the result of a collaboration between education faculty and a…

Purpose: In response to the underexplored need for holistically inclusive makerspaces for learning, we put propose the "SCAFFOLD" framework, which considers equity, inclusion and accessibility in the design of spaces and activities for socioculturally diverse learners. Design/methodology/approach: This paper proposes a universal design…

This paper describes a unit designed to promote the development of narrative writing skills among 5th grade students through the use of LEGO robotics. Over the course of four, two and one-half hour sessions (one day per week for four consecutive weeks), the students learned how to construct and program robots, write and present a proposal to…

This paper presents the training curriculum for teachers developed in the context of the ERASMUS+ project, ROBOESL (2015-2017). The paper focuses on the robotics-based learning methodologies inspired by constructivism and project-based learning principles and implemented within the framework of the ROBOESL training and learning activities. The…

As educators, the authors believe in guiding students towards the life skills, knowledge, and expertise they need to succeed in life and in the workforce of the 21st century. With that in mind, they have created a project in which students drive their own learning through creativity and collaborative work to develop an efficient product. Through…

While looking for labs for his pre-engineering class, the author came across an idea for a marine engineering project from the Future Scientists and Engineers of America website. The author thought the lab looked fun, and it was not too expensive. These were two important criteria as he chose labs for the class. Another important criteria he had…

Cognition, faculty related to perception, imagination, memory, and problem solving, refers to internal mental processes through which sensorial input is acquired, elaborated, used, and stored. One of its importances relies on the fact that it affects in a direct way the learning potential. It has been shown that, even thou cognitive processes…