Engaging High School Students in Robotics and Artificial Intelligence Through Engineering Design Robotics Education

Engineering design education is an effective instructional approach for enhancing students’ motivation, interest, and creativity while introducing them to the engineering design process (EDP). However, there is limited knowledge on how to integrate the EDP into robotics education. This pre-/posttest embedded mixed-methods study adds to the scarce body of literature on interdisciplinary education in engineering design, robotics, and artificial intelligence (AI). This project developed, implemented, and evaluated a project-based Engineering Design+Robotics+AI curriculum with novice Computer Science (CS) high school students. The curriculum introduced students to robotics, Machine Learning, and AI. Students’ collaborative robotics projects were framed using an EDP model to introduce students to engineering education and promote engagement and interest through design-based, hands-on learning. An analysis of quantitative and qualitative data revealed an improvement in students’ CS attitudes, collaboration, and social interactions after participating in the curriculum. Working on robotics engineering design challenges enhanced students’ project experiences and promoted creativity and engagement in the CS classroom. Recommendations for designing robotics projects using the engineering design robotics approach are discussed.