Researcher carried out experiments to evaluate interaction with robots and applications
Finding a suitable methodology for teaching computing to children is a challenge that researcher Laís Minchillo faced in her master's thesis at Unicamp. Guided by professor Juliana Freitag Borin and co-supervised by Edson Borin, both from the Computing Institute (IC), Laís carried out experiments and developed hypotheses about children's interaction with robots and applications, in an attempt to develop “computational thinking”. The term, popularized by Jeannette Wing, a professor at Columbia University, means applying computing and programming concepts to everyday problems, using or modifying technologies in favor of people.
Laís highlights that computing is a very rich field for children's learning and should be taken into consideration in an educational system that considers technology being used in a different way. For her, it's not just about “knowing how to use a computer” or even a calculator, but it would be interesting for children to learn how to manipulate and extend these technologies to different types of projects. “With this, they would have a more articulate ability to understand the world and solve problems,” she said.
In July, the Brazilian Computing Society (SBC) launched a manifesto in the form of a petition for the inclusion of computing teaching in basic education. According to the document, “devices capable of computing are today not only on the office desk or in school laboratories, but in our pockets, in the kitchen, in the car, on our clothes. Much of the information that humanity has today is stored digitally. However, the vast majority of people do not have the knowledge to access and properly use this information. ”
In her master's research, Laís, who now works as a software engineer at Google, carried out three series of experiments developed at a school in Campinas, involving a total of 25 children, between 9 and 10 years old. The researcher took robots and tablets to the group and observed how the children interacted with each other and with technology. An application sent, via bluetooth, the commands for the robots. In pairs, students had to develop the proposed challenges. Based on the observation, Laís formulated some hypotheses for use in future investigations.
The first was that the presence of the physical instrument, in this case the robot, was motivating for the children. According to Laís, it was a differentiator of the work because, generally, teaching methods only use digital platforms. Another issue observed was the negative impact that tests and tests related to “play” can have, as many schools do.
Thirdly, Laís noticed that children felt more comfortable when they were free to use the application or instrument. “However, this does not mean that they will learn better, because what often ends up happening is that children deviate from the purpose of trying to solve the challenges.”
The researcher also noted that the competitive environment is very enjoyable for children. “When there was, for example, a race between robots, they would try to make a better program than their colleague to win.” But in projects with more complex resolutions, students collaborated with each other to achieve a better result.
The last question that the research posed was that teachers can suggest activities that complement what is being seen in computing, whether in learning mathematics, physics or other subjects.
“Children are more familiar with digital technologies. They do not have difficulty learning, and yes, we adults have difficulties teaching, which is why it is so important to help in the development of a teaching methodology”, highlights Laís.
