Theoretical perspectives on teaching with robots: from interdisciplinary prerequisites and necessities in today’s classrooms to five different types of robots
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Author (Corporation)
Publication date
03.08.2026
Type of student thesis
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Collections
Type
01A - Journal article
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Parent work
AI in Education
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Series number
Volume
2
Issue / Number
3
Pages / Duration
28
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Publisher / Publishing institution
MDPI
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Basel
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Abstract
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, children and adolescents across Europe have experienced a significant rise in mental health challenges, including anxiety, depression, and behavioural disorders. Schools have observed a marked shift in social behaviour, with increased emotional instability, social withdrawal, and attention-related issues. Simultaneously, educational systems face a growing shortage of skilled professionals, particularly in psychological support roles. While digital technologies offer partial relief, their effectiveness is limited by concerns such as screen fatigue and a lack of embodied interaction. This paper conceptualises the use of social robots as a novel intervention tool in education, grounded in the 4E cognition framework—embodied, embedded, enacted, and extended—and informed by interdisciplinary research. Using design thinking and insights from empirical and practical work, we developed five use cases for integrating robots into the Swiss MindMatters mental health promotion programme. These five use cases demonstrate how robots can facilitate emotional learning, simulate social interactions, support conflict mediation, and reduce teacher workload. By combining physical presence with adaptive behaviour, social robots, which will serve as digital twins of pedagogical partners, offer a promising, ethically sensitive extension of classroom environments, fostering deeper engagement, social competence, and cognitive development in ways traditional technologies cannot fully replicate.
Keywords
social robotics, child education, interdisciplinary competence, social behaviour, 4E cognition, design thinking principles
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ISBN
ISSN
3042-8130
Language
English
Created during FHNW affiliation
Yes
Strategic action fields FHNW
New Work
Publication status
Published
Review
peer-reviewed
Open access category
Gold
License
Citation
Christ, O., Riedl, R., Schmid, J., Zürcher, P., & Thilo, F. (2026). Theoretical perspectives on teaching with robots: from interdisciplinary prerequisites and necessities in today’s classrooms to five different types of robots. AI in Education, 2(3), 28. https://doi.org/10.3390/aieduc2030028