Designing human-centered robots: The role of constructive failure

Abstract

Framing of failure as constructive can help students to engage in authentic practices of iterative design and to leverage failure in future experiences. In contrast to classroom norms that privilege “right” answers and perfect final submissions, classrooms that position failure and iteration as norms prepare students for the realities of complex problem solving. This qualitative case study examines the role of failure in one middle school human-centered robotics curriculum, a challenging collaborative problem-solving experience for these students. In this context, we conceptualize constructive failure as short-term and supported experiences of failure that build a base for longer-term success solving complex engineering design problems. Within this unit focused on the design and development of robots that serve a social function, scaffolds were provided to orient students to the benefits of failing fast and often. Across several episodes, we show how the instructor of this course introduced and supported failure, and we trace the trajectory of two groups as they moved from frustration to articulating failure as necessary in a comparative case study. This analysis highlights constructive failure as an asset for learning through iterative design and for the development of creative problem-solving skills. We conjecture that formative experiences of failure can support the process of problem-based learning (PBL) – particularly PBL centered on design thinking. This case study works to inform how future K-12 classrooms and curricula might be structured to support and recognize failure as a positive norm and a valued part of collaborative problem solving and design.