Play and Learning

A great post at the inestimably well-written and well curated Good.is looks at the connections between robots and learning, finding that robots are a "useful proxy for understanding kids' social, creative and learning aspirations." Perhaps more importantly, the reporting of the post's author (the equally inestimable Liz Dwyer) suggests that what students like most about working with robots is their non-judgmental patience.

21st century classrooms should be places of joyful tinkering, playful learning and spirited engagement where both students and teachers feel drawn by a day-to-day tone of encouragement and, yes, play, to push themselves towards and beyond their limits and "potential." To the degree possible, classrooms should be places where students and teachers strive to solve meaningful problems and do so in ways that when executed, surprise even themselves. Classrooms, in short, like the classrooms described in this thought-provoking post.