The two-day meeting began at I. Primary School Čakovec, the project coordinator, while the second day’s activities took place at FOI in Varaždin. During the meeting, participants had the opportunity to learn about the project’s goals, planned activities, and expected outcomes, which include enhancing students' competencies and making a significant contribution to the educational community.
My Robot, My LearnMate is an innovative three-year strategic partnership that connects students, teachers, and advanced technology to enhance digital competencies, creativity, and collaboration through learning facilitated by the humanoid robot NAO.
The project is coordinated by I. Primary School Čakovec, with partners including FOI, the Center for Education Čakovec, Berliner Hochschule für Technik in Germany, I Spoleczna Szkola Podstawowa im. Unii Europejskiej w Zamosciu in Poland, and Agrupamento de Escolas de Mangualde and Escola Básica com Pré-escolar Dr. Eduardo Brazão de Castro in Portugal.
The project that connects the scientific and educational community is led by Ivana Ružić, an IT teacher at the I. Primary School Čakovec. She emphasizes that through the synergy of all partners, they aim to program a robot that should increase students' motivation for learning, boost engagement in teaching processes, and improve overall learning outcomes. Siniša Stričak, the principal of the I. Primary School Čakovec, states that over the past 10 years, the school has implemented 24 Erasmus+ projects, gaining extensive experience, with the greatest benefits going to students, parents, the school itself, and the local community. Dragica Benčik, the principal of the Center for Education and Rehabilitation Čakovec, highlights that the project will explore ways to use the NAO robot in working with children with developmental challenges.
The biggest benefit of this project is the transfer of knowledge from institutions that already have experience using robots in education to schools. “At our university, Berliner Hochschule für Technik, we often work with such robots, and our research shows that motivation, curiosity for STEM fields, and student engagement have significantly increased with their use” said Prof. Ilona Buchem, Ph. D., head of the Communication Lab there. The project, funded under the Erasmus+ program with a budget of €250,000, started on October 1, 2024, and will run until September 30, 2026.
Upon completion, the international research team aims to deliver the following outcomes:
- Certified and open online training program for teachers on the use of the humanoid robot NAO in education
- Certified and open online training program for students on the STEM Education for Sustainable Development
- Certified and open online training program for students on the Social and Emotional Learning and Inclusive Culture
- Manuals and methods for using the NAO robot in education and examples of good practices of using robots as teaching
- assistants on five languages: English, Croatian, Polish, Portuguese and German language
- Manuals and methods for using the NAO robot in STEM Education for Sustainable Development and examples of good practices on five languages: English, Croatian, Polish, Portuguese and German language
- Manuals and methods for using the NAO robot in Social and Emotional Learning and Inclusive Culture and examples of good practices on five languages: English, Croatian, Polish, Portuguese and German language.
The role of higher education institutions in this project is to design the research and prepare the robot for conducting experiments in schools. This collaboration is essential, as universities design the research, develop the robot’s core concepts, and collect data to explain its role in learning and teaching contexts. Meanwhile, schools implement the research by integrating robots into the teaching process and creating practical guidelines for their use, which can also benefit other educators. This mutual collaboration pushes the boundaries of knowledge about applying humanoid robots in education and provides clear directions for their future use.
Additionally, FOI is working on integrating the robot with AI models such as ChatGPT to explore its potential for supporting teachers in preparing the robot for various teaching scenarios. This AI-enhanced approach can significantly simplify teachers' tasks - noted Prof. Balaban.
For more information about the project’s goals, activities, and results, visit the project website.
