Introduction: Educational Robotics

The process of democratization of technology that has taken place since 1980 in the professional, tuition and entertainment spheres has paved the way for a renewal of education. Soon after the computer entered our society, Papert and Solomon [PAP 72] published "Twenty things to do with a computer". At that time, these authors observed that, when asked what they thought about computers in education, people had different ideas. Some imagined future students as computer programmers: these people thought that the next generation would have learnt and mastered programming as a normal process of alphabetization; others, by contrast, apprehended the possibility that the computers would have "programmed" the students, i.e. a massive use of technology in education could have irreversibly transformed students ways of thinking and communicating in a machine-like manner.

Today, a new technological revolution has started, namely the robolution [BON 10]. This revolution seems to be so powerful and pervasive that our times have been defined as "the era of the robot". Daily use of robotics is encouraged in an extensive range of domains, among which is the educational domain. However, caution should be used with regard to a revolution that could be dictated by industrial development and technological progress more than by authentic educational needs.

It thus becomes urgent to understand the usefulness of integrating robots in the educational system. Such urgency results in the emergence of a new specific field of study: educational robotics (ER) [EGU 10]. ER aims to introduce to the classroom a variety of embodied artificial intelligence technologies (human-like as well as animal-like robots and robotic kits). According to Bussi and Mariotti [BUS 09, p. 2], who borrow from Vygotsky's notion of semiotic mediation [VYG 78], educational robots are intended as "semiotic tools":

"(.) semiotic potential resides in any artifact consisting of the double semiotic link that the artifact has with both the personal meanings that emerge from its use and the knowledge evoked by that use (.) in educational settings".

By means of such tools, the general objective of ER is to scaffold and renew teaching on the one side and learning on the other side [DEN 94].

After 30 years since the arrival of Logo Turtle1 [PAP 80, PEA 83, KLA 88, CLE 93], the first educational robot, we believe it is time to clarify the nature of ER and to start thinking about "Twenty things to do with a robot", in particular with an educational robot - Appendix 1 [RES 96].

In order to do this, we will first outline the historical origins of ER and describe its position with respect to other current information and communication technologies (ICTs). Then, we will illustrate the three learning paradigms presently supported by the types of robots available on the market: learning robotics, learning with robotics and learning by robotics. These three learning paradigms are the focus of our research and motivate the tripartite structure of this book. Their definition is of pivotal importance for introducing our three experimental investigations and will therefore be deepened all along the present work. Finally, we will present the research questions from which we have moved to develop this work.

I.1. Origins, positioning and pedagogical exploitations of ER

ER finds its origins in a historical moment where the gap dividing the generation of "digital natives" and the previous one of "digital immigrants" becomes manifest in terms of technology fluency and ways of thinking [PRE 01]. Surrounded by digital technologies from their birth, young people today might treat information differently from their predecessors, who nowadays experience difficulties in adapting to such an omnipresence of technology.

If so, this technogenerational gap is particularly relevant in educational contexts, where these two generations, represented by teachers and students, interact to develop new knowledge and competences by using educational tools, which are capable of shaping students' intellectual growth. For this reason, a debate has been raised about limiting new technologies to extra-school contexts (e.g. summer campus and competitions) versus employing them at school [ARR 03]. Although education is already familiar with questions about the suitability of technologies in the class, it is indeed new to questions about the suitability of this specific technology, i.e. robotics. It is thus crucial to systematize theoretical and experimental knowledge about ER to understand its possible applications and consequent impacts on education. In fact, though being still a "babbling" discipline [MAT 04], ER already presents three fundamental characteristics: (1) a multidiscipline heritage, (2) a specific positioning with respect to other current ICT, and (3) different hardware-software combinations, which serve different pedagogical exploitations. In the following sections, we will examine these three characteristics to delineate the identity of ER.

I.2. A cross-disciplinary heritage

ER is at the crossroads of three disciplines belonging to the broader area of research of cognitive sciences: psychology, educational science and artificial intelligence.

Fundamental studies from psychology on the role of experiential learning [PIA 52], intrinsic versus extrinsic motivation [LEP 00], social dynamics of learning [VYG 78] and meta-cognition [GAG 09] are crucial for investigating the mental processes implied by the use of a new technology for educational objectives [AND 08].

Educational sciences, which seek to implement research on cognitive and emotional mechanisms at play during learning [MEL 09], provide a number of case studies that are representative of current pedagogical approaches [BRU 02], monitor trends in learning results - see, for example, OECD-PISA (The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development-Programme for International Student Assessment)2 - and also support the design of guidelines for the adaptation of the educational system to contemporary society [VOS 01].

Artificial intelligence [HEU 94], more recently labeled as "cognitive informatics" [WAN 10], continuously raises new challenges in terms of robot prototypes with physical and functional features engendering a variety of interaction possibilities. In this sense, ER confronts young students with a technology at the boundary of living and non-living entities, which can be built and programmed for obtaining specific functions and behaviors [MAR 00].

We argue that it is the combination of these three disciplines that contributes to defining the technological status and pedagogical exploitations of educational robots, as distinct from previous educational technologies.

I.3. The educational robot: an ICT like others?

In the last 20 years, different types of technologies, suited for different educational exploitations, have appeared. A variety of educational softwares have been conceived for interactive learning on traditional hardware supports (computers, tablets, etc.) [DE 01]. Other tools - such as the e-learning platforms [ROS 01] and the digital schoolbag [TIJ 06] - allow customization of the educational interface according to students' needs.

Critical reflections about the integration of ICT at school have been at the heart of committed debates among educators, researchers and decisions makers, engendering questions such as "What is the role of media in education?" and, among the media, "What is the role of the computer?". With the birth of ER, further questions have been raised: what similarities do robots share with their technological precursors? What distinguishes the former from the latter?

As a first answer, two features of the robot and of its precursor, the computer, can be examined: their "technological status" and their "pedagogical exploitations".

With respect to technological status, the computer presents a double specificity: this technology can be either an end in itself - i.e. an engineering object that it is employed as a platform to understand how computers are assembled and programmed - or an ICT [AND 08] that can be defined as a medium, a processor and a tool [BAR 96]. As a "medium", the computer supports software that students use to interactively acquire new knowledge. As a "processor", the computer facilitates treatment and storage of information in a way that is specific to the type of content. As a "tool", the computer can be employed to elaborate documents, visualize numerical data, etc.

If we apply this distinction to robots, we find that, as an ICT, the robot can be defined in terms of object - i.e. a constructible and programmable device that can be used to learn mechanics, electronics and informatics (e.g. [MIK 06]) - or of tool - i.e. a device employed to acquire new knowledge and competences [ION 07].

With respect to pedagogical exploitations, when using a computer, students can learn either "from" or "with". In the first case, the computer is used to augment pupils' knowledge with software, which facilitates the understanding of subject-related knowledge [BOT 02]. In the second case, technology can be applied to enhance higher-order thinking skills [RIN 02]. This is the case of those software that aim...