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TERECoP – 6° MeetingTERECoP – 6° MeetingEducational Robotics in Italy:Educational Robotics in Italy:future perspectives after the future perspectives after the

TERECoP experienceTERECoP experience

The Italian group:Emanuele Menegatti and Michele Moro, DEI UNIPD;Irene Pagello, Marco Antonelli, and Stefano Tonello, ITR; Nello Fava and Stefano Monfalcon, TMR

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IntroductionIntroduction

• The group• Previous competences• The course implementations• Outcomes• The lessons learnt• Future development

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The groupThe group

• Department of Computer Engineering (DEI) – University of Padova● Emanuele Menegatti● Michele Moro

• IT+Robotics (ITR) – Padova● Irene Pagello● Marco Antonelli, Stefano Tonello, Alberto Pretto

• Town Museum of Rovereto (TMR)● Nello Fava● Stefano Monfalcon

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Previous competencesPrevious competences

• DEI● Research on Robotics and Computer Vision● Programming languages and Real time systems

● Constructivist/constructionist approach in teaching/learning

• ITR● Development of robotic application● Dissemination of modern robotic culture

• TMR● Dissemination of scientific knowledge● Application of educational robotics● Supporting the scholastic system for applying robotics in education

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The course implementationsThe course implementations

• The ‘official’ implementation was held in Rovereto

• About 15 in-service teachers on different levels

• Two weekends + two evaluation meetings

• Objectives:● to build competences for designing educational laboratory project-based activities;

● to learn to use innovative didactic methodologies and technologies that the course proposed;

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The course implementationsThe course implementations

• Objectives:

● to consolidate the ability of working in groups, also through the use of ICT tools;

● working on:▪ the realization of the proposed activities, with communication and guided groupbased work;

▪ pedagogical and methodological reasoning on the educative management of the activity

• After the course, ten teachers presented their activities in the exhibition of the Discovery Festival

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The course implementationsThe course implementations

• Another implementation in Bolzano• About 20 in-service teachers as trainees

• Following substantially the TERECoP curriculum with some adaptations

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OutcomesOutcomes

• Papers presented in international conferences

• Organization of a workshop on Educational Robotics followed by an open day in Venice

• Organization of the edu-robotics exhibition within the Discovery in Rovereto (included a TERECoP stand)

• Participation to several initiatives organized by schools

• Participation to the Open Day in Pamplona

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OutcomesOutcomes

• Development● Several didactical examples of various levels, both in NXT-G and NXC

● Analysis of the NXT sensors● A simple simulator with graphical interface

● A remote laboratory● How to control NXT with other languages

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Lessons learntLessons learnt

• Teacher prefer practical activities with respect to theoretical lessons

• They are not used to exploit a constructivist approach in their daily lessons in the class

• Their request was for activities examples with a clear didactical content● Importance of a well presented and organized repository (avoiding just off-the-shelf examples)

• They show difficulties in organizing effective and well-integrated laboratorial activities

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Lessons learntLessons learnt

• Some criticalities● In Italy teachers of arts and humanities have difficulties in approaching robots as a teaching tools and also in collaborating on a project base with the teachers of science or technology

● The cost of the NXT kit● NXT could be too complex for primary level students and perceived too childish for oldest secondary level students

● Financial requests for new courses

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Lessons learntLessons learnt

• Suggestions● Take into account the peculiar local school context and teacher audience

● Focalize the conveying to teachers of the methodological method and to give them motivations for applying robotic technologies within their normal curricula

● Not be strictly dependent on the robotic kit chosen

● Find collaborations with external entities (apart from financial issues) if the can give support in any phase of the learning process (examples: FLL, LEC, Robocup, club houses)

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Future ProjectsFuture Projects

• The organization of new teacher training activities in collaboration with the school network(s) and official scholastic institutions

• To continue development of lab activities with undergraduate/graduate students (more specifically using Lejos, URBI and with humanoid robots)

• The participation to a new European or National Project on Educational Robotics (to be identified)

• To organize again a workshop (and maybe an open day) at SIMPAR 2010 in Darmstadt (Germany)

• To collaborate with TMR for the LEC, FLL and other dissemination activities

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The endThe end

TERECoP – 6° Meeting - M.Moro – DEI UNIPD - Italy