Robots possess unique affordances granted by combining software and hardware. Most existing research focuses on the impact of these affordances on human-robot collaboration, but the theory of how robots can facilitate human-human collaboration is underdeveloped. Such a theory would be beneficial in education. An educational device can afford collaboration in both assembly and use. This thesis will enumerate and validate the design principles of educational devices that facilitate collaborative assembly and collaborative learning.
This research draws upon cognitive theories used in the disciplines of Computer-Supported Collaborative Work (CSCW), Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL), Educational Robotics, and Human-Robot Interaction (HRI). Each discipline uses theories that align with its respective goals to model different pieces of cognition. However, they do not consider other factors outside their respective goals. Diverse analytical lenses are needed to understand the multiple dimensions of influence an educational device can have on human-human interaction to support collaborative assembly and collaborative learning.

We explore these dimensions first through the development and assessment of
RoboLoom, a robotic Jacquard loom kit designed for interdisciplinary, collaborative education. Through the study of RoboLoom’s use and assembly in an undergraduate course, we extract design features that facilitate student-student collaboration during classroom activities. These features encompass task complexity, task parallelization, physicality, repetition of tasks, specificity of hardware, and familiarity with hardware.
We then explore these design principles through three studies: a comparison
between two different looms, a study of devices designed for and against the principles, and a comparison of two versions of RoboLoom. We find five design principles that influence collaborative behavior: repetitiveness, specificity, parallelizability, physicality, and difficulty. These design principles were shown to causally change collaborative behaviors in controlled lab settings and in situ engineering education tasks. By evaluating these systems through multiple cognitive lenses, we determine that these design principles are effective in facilitating collaborative assembly and promising for collaborative learning.

    Illah Nourbakhsh, Co-Chair

    Melisa Orta Martinez, Co-Chair