USING OF ROBOTICS FOR LEARNING MOTIVATION

Increasing students’ interest in learning is a major problem of modern higher education. Motivation is the source of activity. It performs cognitive functions and bring sense into the educational process. Motivation refers to the internal psychological characteristics of personality and shows the relation of person to the world and different activities. Activity with a weak motive or without it can not be carried out or deeply unstable. Thus, students are to develop an internal knowledge desire for obtaining scientific experience and practical skills in their educational process. Competitions and gaming elements are important aspects for motivation. The described in the paper method is a creation of such educational process methodology that will ensure competition between groups of students in terms of equal participation for each of them. This paper describes problems of motivation in the field of technical and engineering education, the influence exerted by this area of knowledge on the development of industry and the economy in the current conditions of the Russian Federation. The using of robotic kits and implementation of a competitive element in educational process is proposed to overcome some negative tendencies. The author describes a number of most common robotic kits used in education. Their advantages and disadvantages, applicability for the study of physics, mathematics, electrical engineering, control theory, programming are determined. As an example, structure, the functionality, characteristics, and advantages of Bioloid Robotic Kit described in detail. Besides, the paper describes the most famous world robotics competition for students and school pupils in various disciplines. It presents the experiment of using them at ITMO University as a qualifying selection for participation in international competitions. It shows introduction of the competitions in educational process and their influence on students’ motivation in learning. It proves the necessity of making such competitions throughout Russia and their integration into a single system. Introduction of competitions in educational process will increase the interest in the design and engineering directions and specialties, develop analytical mindset of younger generation and its ability in technical creativity, enhance its professional competitiveness, and maintain the opinion about the prestige of engineering and design disciplines among the population. These factors can give a powerful impetus to the development of technology and innovation and as a consequence the entire economy.

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