2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Integrating Robotics and Automation in STEM Education: Preparing the Future Workforce for Advanced Manufacturing

Presented at Multidisciplinary Engineering Division (MULTI) Technical Session 6

The landscape of STEM education is undergoing a significant transformation, with an increasing focus on equipping middle and high school students for careers in advanced manufacturing and robotics. Through the NSF-RET initiative, we provided advanced manufacturing research experiences to twenty-eight K-14 educators during six-week summer workshops in 2023 and 2024. Among these educators six of them are community college educators and rest of them are high school educators. These educators not only conducted research but also developed curriculum modules for their students during the summer workshops. They also implemented these modules once they returned to their respective institutions. This comprehensive paper presents an in-depth analysis of five innovative projects designed to integrate robotics and automation into the educational curriculum. We highlight the pivotal role of educators in curriculum development and demonstrate the effectiveness of kinesthetic learning in enhancing students' understanding of complex STEM concepts. Through hands-on activities, experiential learning, and problem-solving exercises, we illustrate how these approaches prepare students for careers in rapidly evolving technological fields.

Authors
  1. Mohammed Abouheaf Bowling Green State University [biography]
  2. Dr. MD ZAHABUL ISLAM Bowling Green State University [biography]
  3. Mohammad Mayyas Bowling Green State University
Download paper (1.85 MB)