Contextualizing Educational Robotics Programming with Augmented Reality

Abstract

The development of technology in recent years has led to the research of innovative tools in education. Technologies, such as Augmented, Virtual, and Mixed Reality can be utilized in immersive environments for educational purposes. Educational Robotics has also been prevalent in K-12 and STEM education. In this paper, we describe a mobile augmented reality learning environment to support robotics programming. An augmented reality application was developed and evaluated by two experts. Two experiments were conducted, including the non-AR and the AR condition. The participants were primary school students. Both observation and interviews were conducted. Our results showed that augmented reality attracts students’ interest in robotics programming, prompts them to participate in the learning process and is easy to use. Limitations and advantages of the AR approach in educational robotics were pointed out. The results indicate that contextualizing robotics with augmented reality is promising and should be further studied.