Introduction

The relationship between technological and pedagogical innovation has recently created a new field of research at the crossroads between Psychology, Educational Sciences and Artificial Intelligence: Educational Robotics (ER).

Pedagogical Paradigms

Through analysis of the achievable educational goals based on the technological status and specific learning modes of different types of robots, it is possible to define three pedagogical paradigms: learning robotics, learning with robotics, and learning by robotics.

Themes Addressed in the Book

In this book we address these three paradigms through three themes: human representations of robots, the acceptance and trust shown when interacting with a humanoid, and learning favored by the development and programming of robots in an educational context. These themes allow the authors to fully explore, define and delimit this novel field of research for future application in educational and social contexts.

Discussion and Future Directions

Finally, the book discusses contributions and limitations which have emerged from different methodologies of research, potential educational applications, and concepts of human–robot interaction for the development of the above paradigms.