Robotics For Kids: Is It Too Complicated ?

By Admin,

While unemployment in the world is continuously rising. Almost 1,50,000 of the jobs every year are taken over by robots and AIs. Millions of students graduate every year, but still remain unemployed due to inadequate knowledge of STEM streams, especially Robotics.

In the present time, robotics is the buzz tech word in society. Since, during the time of COVID-19 pandemic, people truly recognised the power of AI. The life of people revolved around digital media and AI/bots/robotics had some or other role to play in this. Yet, a large proportion of parents who think robotics for kids is not a real thing.

Robotics For Kids – Fun Activity

There are misconceptions around robotics for kids. Most parents believe that the kids will get exposed to high-level coding programs. But this is not true at all. Undoubtedly coding is an essential part of robotics, but robotics includes various other aspects also. Some of the facts about robotics for kids are:

• Robotics is the collective efforts of mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, and computer science.
• In the beginning stage, your kid will learn about the electronic part of robotics. It will help them to get the basic concept of electricity and current.
• Kids in school learn science with lessons on electricity. By looking at their practical relevance, they will develop their interest in STEM learning.

If your kid grows watching and modelling robots, their love for robots will grow stronger. At their young age, it will push them to learn more about it. They will come close to coding, a much-in-demand job skill. Many programs like Real School already have such courses, which encourages kids to explore robotics via project-based learning programs.

Allowing kids to explore coding and robotics is a controversial topic. The myths around them stop many parents from offering their kids the demanded skill of robotics and coding.

Myths Around Robotics

Myths around coding are more prominent and create uncertainty in the parents’ minds. Robotics and coding share similar parables. Here are some of them:

•  According to the news that came out in 2019, the director of education and skills at OECD — the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, Andreas Schleicher, speaking at the World Innovation Summit for Education in Paris, mentioned that coding is a waste of time. The focus was that by the time kids grow-up, it would be obsolete.
• Robotics is only for coders. Most parents think if their kid is not interested in computers or going to pursue coding, they don’t need to learn it. More than a life skill, robotics is counted as something only scientists need to know.
• Robotics is for genius. You must have heard things like, how will my kid learn robotics if he/she is not doing great in academics. Coding or robotics is supposed to be a complicated job done by toppers and gifted people only.
• Robotic looks like monotonous work. A person involved in assembling a robot sits in front of a computer all day and writes something continuously in a language nobody else can understand. The job seems to be so tiresome that anyone would do it only out of forcedness.
• Robotics is a skill that you should learn at an early age only. After a particular time, there is no value in learning it. Most people consider robotics as a work only youngsters who recognize the technical aspects can perform.
• You need to be a science marvel to do robotics. If you are not good at electronics, robotics is way out of your reach. People think of assembling robots as a work only science experts can do.
• It is a myth related to the advanced part of robotics. Coding requires an understanding of various languages. Most people think learning a particular coding language like python, java, C, C++, HTML is enough. If you expertise any one language, you will get work throughout your life.
• This is a myth observed after kids learn robotics as a whole, that is when they become coders. Most coders consider their language as the most superior and suitable than the other programming languages.
• People think they have to take a university course to learn robotics. So, if they are not from a science background, they cannot learn robotics ever in their life.

The picturization of people involved in robotics in sci-fi movies leaves an impact on parents. In most movies, they are nerds wearing spectacles, clothes that seem unwashed for ages with hair grown all around the body, lives in an unorganized room, always sit in front of a computer pressing the keys faster than the blink of eyes. Looking at these illogical perceptions of them, parents hesitate to let their kids pursue robotics.

Robotics for kids: It’s not complicated

If you are also among the parents, who think robotics is a subject too complicated for kids, you should explore the field more. However, the few myths listed above are valid. But a majority of them are false. This section will burst each of these common myths, in sequence, with facts.

• Coding is not going anywhere soon, neither robotics. Neither computers will become so advanced that you can order them, and they will create code for themselves. Undoubtedly you will get a particular application that will do all the work you want. But then also someone has to code and assemble computers to do it.
• There is no denial in the fact that your kids will live exposed to the screen for longer times. But robotics does not mean that your kids’ gaming time has to be compromised. Many programs provide robotics for kids in a fun way. So your kids will learn new things along with enjoying a break from their daily school schedule.
• Do only writers have to learn writing skills? Do only anchors have to learn speaking skills? Everyone should know how to speak and write because they are common skills, helpful in every sphere. Similarly, robotics is not something only coders should know. It is life skills that will help your kid even beyond the corporate world. Even the courses that are taught in Read School (ed-tech company) start with basic circuit and motor understanding, and escalates to the next stage.
• Robotics and coding seem complicated in the beginning. But it is just the language through which you communicate with computers. In coding, you have your own set of grammar and vocabulary. Modern programming languages are easy to understand.
• Robotics is not tedious. It is not only about doing some computer stuff. It is a way to design the world around you. For example: if your kid loves a particular game, he/she can assemble a new game with better content through learning robotics and enjoy it with their friends.
• Although the article focuses on myths around robotics for kids, it is significant to address this myth. There is no age bar to learn to code. It is a field that is and will remain in demand for ages now. Even if someone cannot take
• Undoubtedly, science is a fundamental element of coding. But your kid doesn’t have to be a scientist to learn to code. After looking at the practical application of what they learn in class, they might get inclined towards it. It will increase their science ability.
• Programming languages evolve continuously. Maybe today your kid learned python. After some time, it becomes out of date. So it is critical to keep yourself updated with the most demanded programming languages. It seems to be a difficult task. But all programming languages work on almost the same structure with minor differences.
• Each language has its purpose. Developers use languages according to the objective of their project. So, programming languages are non-comparable. Each language is unique in its specific way.
• With reforms in the education system, robotics and coding in some years will become an integral part of the curriculum. Also, there are infinite resources available on the net. You can also provide your kids online coaching for robotics. This way, they will start learning from assembling electronic devices and might end up developing high-tech robots. The early they start, the better they will perform in their future.

With the digital world expanding, it is vital to break stereotypes related to robotics. It will ensure that any kid doesn’t miss the opportunity to become successful only because of a myth or rumour created around him.

Girl Kids and Robotics

You will be surprised to know that less than 30% of the total female population are engaged in research projects. Some statistics related to female participation in robotics are:

• Female students are under-represented in the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) related fields.
• Less than one-third of the total female students pursue courses related to computer science and engineering in higher education.
• The paycheck of male and females employees in the STEM field is comparatively less than their male counterparts.

Less participation of females is a matter of concern. There are many reasons behind this. One of them is the long-run mentality that robotics is a male-oriented job and females are incapable of doing something which requires logical thinking. However, some examples prove females can perform better than males in problem-solving skills.

Robotics as a Life Skills

According to a recent study, students are interested in computer science more than other prominent subjects like history, maths, English, etc. Even in Real School (an ed-tech brand) robotics is one of the most popular subjects that students show interest in. Coding, robotics is not only a subject learned by coders. It incorporates various life skills. It develops skills like logical thinking, computational thinking, teamwork, cognitive skills,  among others. Many government agencies like agriculture, healthcare, education, military, food manufacturing are looking for people skilled with problem-solving abilities. So more than focusing on conceptual knowledge, learning robotics gives them skills to solve real-life problems.