Concept behind LearningFactoryBox

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The main concept behind the FactoryBox is project based learning, which has been proven to be very effective, especially in the realm of techical topics.

Project-based learning (PBL) is an active student-centred form of instruction which is characterised by students’ autonomy, constructive investigations, goal-setting, collaboration, communication and reflection within real-world practices.

Kokotsaki, D., Menzies, V., & Wiggins, A. (2016). Project-based learning: a review of the literature. Improving Schools, 19(3), 267-277. https://doi.org/10.1177/1365480216659733

The idea is that we give the students small blocks in form of example codes.
They can then use these blocks to build a bigger block themselves.

Block 1 – Turn on a LED

Block 2 – See if a button has been pushed

Task: Turn the LED on when the button has been pushed

Transfer: Combine the two codes

Resulting Block: Very basic lighting system

They can then use that new block and combine it with others to increase functionality and their knowledge as seen in the picture below.

This not only allows for scalability, but also for a wide range of difficulty. Beginners can create small functions, while advanced learners can even expand on the basic Arduino Code with C++ functionality.

Additionally, since the Coding Challenges and the overall model are designed with a clear focus on factory functionality, the coders passively pick up on their functionality and purpose.

The full process is (visually) explained in the document below.