SCHOOLCHILDREN’S PROJECT AND RESEARCH WORK IMPLEMENTATION BY MEANS OF TRAINING ROBOTICS

Juliya Shtepa¹, Ruslan Bazhenov²*, Nadezhda Eyrikh³, Vladimir Glagolev⁴, Dmitry Luchaninov⁵, Anna Smirnova^6
1Assoc. Prof. Dr., Sholom-Alechem Priamursky State University, Russia, shtepa2001@mail.ru
²Assoc. Prof. Dr., Sholom-Alechem Priamursky State University, Russia, r-i-bazhenov@yandex.ru
³Assoc. Prof. Dr., Sholom-Alechem Priamursky State University, Russia, nadya_eyrikh@mail.ru
⁴Assoc. Prof. Dr., Sholom-Alechem Priamursky State University, Russia, glagolev-jar@yandex.ru
⁵Assoc. Prof. Dr., Sholom-Alechem Priamursky State University, Russia, dvluchano@mail.ru
⁶Assoc. Prof. Dr., Sholom-Alechem Priamursky State University, Russia, dmvan2013@mail.ru
*Corresponding author

Abstract

Objectives: The article dwells upon a learning robotics course as a resource for performing schoolchildren’s project and research work. Methods / Analysis: The article focuses on the project and research methods used to teach schoolchildren to robotics. Mastering training, research and project work is supposed to be one of the skills required from school graduates as necessary to perform their work well. Project and research work with robotic equipment is considered to teach schoolchildren how to use a computer as a means of learning, the ability to combine theoretical and applied computer science foundation’s in educational and extracurricular activities, programming engineering systems, as well as developing real/actual working models. The article deals with the content-related and the rules of procedure learning aspects of the basic robotics while training. It is also devoted to students’ involvement in a robotics club activity using Lego Mindstorms EV3 kits. These classes are taken to solve design and engineering issues, train object-oriented programming and modeling. 4-8 grade students of school 3 in the town of Sovetskaya Gavan (there were 44 students in a test group and 60 of them in experimental groups) who participated in that survey. Findings: The survey proved that using some aspects of educational robotics in training contributed to the development of students’ skills to solve not only sample problems but also cope with non-standard ones, carry out their own research. Since there was the further Lego Mindstorms EV3 development in the club activities, it became possible to perform complicated projects, develop independent (unassisted) technical/engineering innovation activities (Imagineering), and participate in robotics competitions. When evaluating skills in the field of project and research work, the indicator values expressed have grown by an average of 24 per cent in the experimental group according to such criteria as an ability to define objectives and tasks, to observe and discover the basic characteristics of the reported pattern, to carry out an experiment, to generate a hypothesis, etc. Thus the authors can make a conclusion that training schoolchildren in robotics make it possible to achieve improvements in the level of skills development in the project and research work. Applications / Improvements: Further research prospects may concern the expanding and enhancing of the course offered for high-school students according to their competencies in mathematics, physics and computer science.

Keywords: Training robotics, schoolchildren’s project and research work, Lego Mindstorms, technical innovation activities club.