EDUCATIONAL ROBOTICS IN SCHOOL: LEARNING, INQUIRY, AND COMPUTATIONAL THINKING IN ELEMENTARY EDUCATION

Abstract

This article discusses the contributions of Educational Robotics to learning in Elementary Education, with emphasis on the construction of mathematical knowledge, the development of inquiry and computational thinking, and students’ participation in practices involving creation, experimentation, and problem-solving. This bibliographic, qualitative study is based on the analysis of academic works addressing robotics experiences in public schools, constructionist foundations, mathematical investigation, cultural narratives, block-based programming, and low-cost technologies. The discussion shows that the presence of technology alone does not produce pedagogical innovation. The results reported in the studies analyzed become meaningful when robotics is organized around problems, questions, hypotheses, testing, errors, revisions, and situations connected to students’ contexts. The experiences examined reveal connections among robotics, Mathematics, and Computational Thinking, particularly in activities involving quantities and measurement, time, speed, proportionality, problem decomposition, pattern recognition, abstraction, and algorithm development. Challenges related to infrastructure, teacher education, project continuity, and social conditions affecting student participation are also identified. The analysis indicates that Educational Robotics can provide a productive environment for active and collaborative learning when integrated into pedagogical planning and supported by intentional teacher mediation, feasible access to technologies, and recognition of students’ cultural experiences.