The impact of social robots in education: Moral considerations of Dutch educational policymakers

M. Smakman, J. Berket, E. A. Konijn

Research output: Chapter in Book / Report / Conference proceedingConference contributionAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

Social robots are increasingly studied and applied in the educational domain. Although they hold great potential for education, they also bring new moral challenges. In this study, we explored the moral considerations related to social robots from the perspective of Dutch educational policymakers by first identifying opportunities and concerns and then mapping them onto (moral) values from the literature. To explore their moral considerations, we conducted focus group sessions with Dutch Educational Policymakers (N = 20). Considerations varied from the potential to lower the workload of teachers, to concerns related to the increased influence of commercial enterprises on the educational system. In total, the considerations of the policymakers related to 15 theoretical values. We identified the moral considerations of educational policymakers to gain a better understanding of a governmental attitude towards the use of social robots. This helps to create the necessary moral guidelines towards a responsible implementation of social robots in education.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publication2020 29th IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication, RO-MAN 2020
PublisherInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
Pages647-652
Number of pages6
ISBN (Electronic)9781728160757
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 14 Oct 2020
Event29th IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication, RO-MAN 2020 - Virtual, Naples, Italy
Duration: 31 Aug 20204 Sept 2020

Conference

Conference29th IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication, RO-MAN 2020
Country/TerritoryItaly
CityVirtual, Naples
Period31/08/204/09/20

Funding

*Research supported by The Dutch Research Council (NWO), project number 023.010.066). ACKNOWLEDGMENT We would like to thank all the participants who voluntarily agreed to take part in our research. This research was funded by NWO Doctoral Grant for Teachers project nr. 023.010.066

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