Extended Robotics Solutions for the Inclusive Development of Atypical and Typical Children

The RIDEX (Extended Robotics Solutions for the Inclusive Development of Atypical and Typical Children) project comprised the continuation, improvement and expansion of the RIDE (Robotics for the I...

To this end, we wanted to expand the RIDE methodology with new areas of development that help improve children's language skills. In this way, we wanted to promote the inclusion of children growing up in a bilingual environment. We wanted to extend the impact assessment of the method beyond the key competencies assessed in the RIDE project in order to validate the effectiveness of the method in as many areas as possible. Another goal of the project was to increase the number of language versions available on riderobotics.eu from 5 to 8: in addition to the existing English, Hungarian, Spanish, Italian, and Romanian versions, we aimed to translate the teaching materials into German, Slovak, and Turkish. A further aim was to adapt texts selected from the youth literature of the new languages and cultures to the RIDE methodology. In order to disseminate the methodology, we planned to have the rIDE methodology teacher training recognized in the official teacher training system in the three partner countries.

During the project period, the members of the partnership cooperated according to the plan outlined in the application. The project began with a joint staff training session, which laid the foundation for a common understanding. The teams from each country worked in parallel on the different tasks of the development and translation of the methodological modules. The methodology for the new areas of development was developed by university experts. The impact assessment was also led by these professors: we used standardized psychological and learning methodology tests. We examined an experimental and a control group of students from each partner school at the beginning and end of the project, and evaluated the results using statistics. The students shared their experiences of the test lessons on online platforms and then took part in a 5-day joint camp, where they participated in mixed groups in robotics, creative and playful activities. The members of the partnership took part in several in-person and online partner meetings, where they shared their experiences of the project To multiply the results of the project, we organized workshops, teacher training sessions, and conferences, and carried out intensive dissemination activities