Implementing a Digital Twin for a Robotic Platform to Support Large-Scale Coding Classes

Authors Michael Heeney , Kelly Androutsopoulos , Franco Raimondi



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Author Details

Michael Heeney
  • Department of Computer Science, Middlesex University, London, UK
Kelly Androutsopoulos
  • Department of Computer Science, Middlesex University, London, UK
Franco Raimondi
  • Gran Sasso Science Institute, L'Aquila, Italy

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Michael Heeney, Kelly Androutsopoulos, and Franco Raimondi. Implementing a Digital Twin for a Robotic Platform to Support Large-Scale Coding Classes. In 5th International Computer Programming Education Conference (ICPEC 2024). Open Access Series in Informatics (OASIcs), Volume 122, pp. 15:1-15:12, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2024)
https://doi.org/10.4230/OASIcs.ICPEC.2024.15

Abstract

Constructionist learning involves learners that are actively engaged in the construction of an entity that reflects the learning achievements. When learning to code, such a physical entity can take the shape of a robot, or of a robotic arm, or any other hardware device that is used to manifest the effect of the code that students are writing. Hardware devices have been used in primary and secondary schools, and also in Higher Education. Unfortunately, the use of hardware devices is limited as it does not scale to large cohorts and requires a physical space for face-to-face teaching. In this paper we introduce a digital twin for a robotic platform to replicate a classroom setting used for teaching first year undergraduate Computer Science students. We describe the architecture of the system and its implementation.

Subject Classification

ACM Subject Classification
  • Applied computing → Interactive learning environments
Keywords
  • digital twin
  • introductory programming
  • constructionism
  • robotics
  • computer science education

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