Teaching Shortest Path Algorithms With a Robot and Overlaid Projections

TL;DR

This paper introduces an interactive robot-based teaching system for shortest path algorithms, combining physical robot movements with projected visualizations to enhance understanding of complex algorithms.

Contribution

The paper presents a novel robot-augmented interactive environment for teaching shortest path algorithms, integrating projections, graph construction, and animated exploration.

Findings

Robots can make teaching advanced algorithms more engaging.

Participants showed interest in the robot-assisted visualizations.

Further studies are needed to assess teaching effectiveness.

Abstract

Robots have the potential to enhance teaching of advanced computer science topics, making abstract concepts more tangible and interactive. In this paper, we present Timmy-a GoPiGo robot augmented with projections to demonstrate shortest path algorithms in an interactive learning environment. We integrated a JavaScript-based application that is projected around the robot, which allows users to construct graphs and visualise three different shortest path algorithms with colour-coded edges and vertices. Animated graph exploration and traversal are augmented by robot movements. To evaluate Timmy, we conducted two user studies. An initial study (n=10) to explore the feasibility of this type of teaching where participants were just observing both robot-synced and the on-screen-only visualisations. And a pilot study (n=6) where participants actively interacted with the system, constructed graphs and selected desired algorithms. In both studies we investigated the preferences towards the system and not the teaching outcome. Initial findings suggest that robots offer an engaging tool for teaching advanced algorithmic concepts, but highlight the need for further methodological refinements and larger-scale studies to fully evaluate their effectiveness.