Tomorrow’s robotic classroom
How we learn distinguishes us from all the other species on the planet. How we'll learn tomorrow will be vastly different than how we learn today. We are the only species to engage in organized learning such as schools and tutoring, and it is changing dramatically.
In the July 17, 2009 issue of the journal Science, researchers who are
at the forefront of neuroscience, psychology, education, and machine
learning have synthesized a new science of learning that is already
reshaping how we think about learning and creating opportunities to
re-imagine the classroom for the 21st century.
They point out that advances in
our understanding of learning are now contributing to the development
of machines that are themselves capable of learning and, more
significantly, of teaching. Already these “social robots,” which
interface with humans through dialogue or other forms of communication
and behave in ways that humans are comfortable with, are being used on
an experimental basis as surrogate teachers, helping preschool-age
children master basic skills such as the names of the colors, new
vocabulary, and singing simple songs more>.
Strange to think that robots will be an intricate component of learning in the future. Science fiction isn't so fiction anymore! Roger, Roger.