Robot Helps Students with Learning Disabilities1 Stay Focused2機器人幫助有學習障礙的學生保持注意力集中

李明娟

Engineering3 researchers4 at the University of Waterloo are using a robot tohelp keep children with learning disabilities focused on their work. In a newstudy， both the young students and their teachers thought the robot did play avery important role in class.

滑鐵盧大學的工程研究人員正在使用一個機器人來幫助有學習障礙的兒童專注于他們的學習。在一項新的研究中，年紀小的學生和他們的老師都認為機器人在課堂上發(fā)揮了非常重要的作用。

Students with learning disabilities may get more help， such as one-on-oneteaching and the use of smartphones and tablets5. Teachers have tried to use thesocial6 robots to help students learn in these years. But most often， their study hasfocused on children with Autism Spectrum Disorder7. As a result， little workhas been done on the use of social robots for students with learning disabilities.

有學習障礙的學生可能會得到更多幫助，例如一對一教學以及使用智能手機和平板電腦。近年來，教師們試圖利用社交機器人來幫助學生學習。但大多數(shù)情況下，他們的研究都集中在患有自閉癥譜系障礙的兒童身上。因此，在為有學習障礙的學生使用社交機器人方面的工作做得很少。

Dr. Kerstin Dautenhahn has been working on robots for many years. Alongwith other researchers， Dr. Dautenhahn decided to make some changes and did afew of tests with a small robot called QT. The robot could make gestures8 using itshead and hands as well as language and face. It makes it very suitable9 for use withchildren with learning disabilities.

克斯廷·道騰翰博士多年來一直在研究機器人。道騰翰博士決定和其他研究人員一起改變這一點，并用一種名為QT 的小型機器人進行了一些試驗。機器人可以用它的頭和手以及它的話語和表情做手勢。它非常適合有學習障礙的兒童使用。

There were two groups of 16 students with learning disabilities inthe tests. In one group， students worked one-on-one with a teacheronly. In the other group， the students worked one-on-one with a teacherand a QT robot. In the second group， the teacher used a tablet to direct10 the robot. It then started activities using words and gestures.The robot would set goals and teach the students useful learning ways.

在試驗中，16 名有學習障礙的學生分為兩組。在第一組中，學生只與教師進行一對一的學習。在另一組中，學生與一名教師和一個QT 機器人進行一對一的學習。在第二組中，教師用平板電腦指揮機器人。然后，它開始自己使用語言和手勢開展各種活動。機器人會設(shè)定目標，并為學生提供有用的學習方法。

Dr. Dautenhahn said students working with the robot were more focused ontheir work. They could finish it more quickly than the students without the robot.More studies using the robot are planned.

道騰翰博士說，使用機器人的學生更專注于自己的學習。他們可以比不用機器人的學生更快完成學習任務(wù)。已有計劃使用該機器人進行更多的研究。

Notes

1. disability 殘疾；缺陷；無能力；障礙

2. focused 專注的；目標明確的；聚焦的；專心的

focus 集中；關(guān)注

3. engineering 工程；工程學

4. researcher 研究人員

5. tablet 平板電腦

6. social 社會的；社交的；交際的

7. Autism Spectrum Disorder 自閉癥譜系障礙

8. gesture 手勢；姿勢

9. suitable 適宜的；合適的

10. direct 管理；指揮