The digital skills of the future are developed with the help of programming and robotics

Digital trainer Jukka Lehtoranta Islacat from Edu Oy told us what we can learn with the help of programming and robotics.

- We are living through a historical turning point, an era of digitalization, which is changing our world very widely. What is interesting in the era of digitalization is especially what kind of opportunities it opens up and what kind of skills we can learn and replace with the help of digitalization, Lehtoranta said.

Persistence is rewarded

According to Lehtoranta, in the era of digitalization, the importance of understanding programming and robotics is emphasized, and they can also be used to learn new things.

- With the help of programming and robotics, we can learn, for example, attitudes towards ourselves and technology, multi-literacy, programming thinking and influence and production.

Programming is not always easy and it often requires persistence and perseverance from the author. Lehtoranta says that the difference between a good and a bad programmer is who gives up. 

- A skilled programmer keeps trying despite failures. He also doesn't try to add up, instead he constantly changes the method, changes one thing and sees if it achieves the desired end result.

Practical examples of robots

Information and communication technology lecturer familiar with robotics Timo Pappinen the educational community association from Riveria told about different robots and their operation using practical examples. 

- Different methods are used for programming robots. For example, graphic programming is often based on the Scratch programming language developed by MIT, where blocks are either connected to each other or connected with lines.

After programming, robots can perform various functions. At their simplest, they can be programmed to follow simple commands, such as moving forward and making turns. Today, more advanced robots, such as the social robot Misa presented by Pappinen, are able to react to voice commands and interact with their environment.

- The Misa robot made in the USA can, for example, see, hear and learn. It can help with everyday chores or answer questions put to it.

Students participating in the seminar also had the opportunity to try out the functions of social robots. After the introductions, the day's program continued with demonstrations of robots built by the students themselves.

The event was part of the New Stream of Technology project co-financed by the European Union. 

For more information:

Project manager Aleksi Laaksonen, tel. 020 617 2228, alexi.laaksonenimatra.fi