In China, robots are being developed to deliver groceries, provide
companionship to the elderly, dispense legal advice and now they have
joined the ranks of educators in kindergartens.
Just under 60
centimetres (two feet) high, the autonomous robot named Keeko has been a
hit in several kindergartens, telling stories and challenging children
with logic problems.
In one Chinese kindergarten, children
giggled as they worked to solve puzzles assigned by their new teaching
assistant: a roundish, short educator with a screen for a face.
White
with a tubby body, the armless robot zips around on tiny wheels, its
inbuilt cameras doubling up both as navigational sensors and a
front-facing camera allowing users to record video journals.
At
the Yiswind Institute of Multicultural Education on the outskirts of
Beijing, the children have been tasked to help a prince find his way
through a desert — by putting together square mats that represent a path
taken by the robot — part storytelling and part problem-solving.
Each time they get an answer right, the device reacts with delight, its face flashing heart-shaped eyes.
“Education
today is no longer a one-way street, where the teacher teaches and
students just learn,” said Candy Xiong, a teacher trained in early
childhood education who now works with Keeko Robot Xiamen Technology as a
trainer.
“When children see Keeko with its round head and body,
it looks adorable and children love it. So when they see Keeko, they
almost instantly take to it,” she added.
Keeko robots have
entered more than 600 kindergartens across the country with its makers
hoping to expand into Greater China and Southeast Asia.
Beijing
has invested money and manpower in developing artificial intelligence as
part of its “Made in China 2025” plan, with a Chinese firm last year
unveiling the country’s first human-like robot that can hold simple
conversations and make facial expressions.
According to the
International Federation of Robots, China has the world’s top industrial
robot stock, with some 340,000 units in factories across the country
engaged in manufacturing and the automotive industry.
The
service robot market — which includes devices ranging from specialised
medical equipment to automated vacuum cleaners –- is estimated to be
worth $1.32 billion last year.
It is expected to grow to $4.9 billion by 2022, said market research firm Research In China.
Last
week, Beijing hosted the World Robot Conference, featuring machines
that can diagnose diseases, play badminton and wow audiences with their
musical skills.
Last year, a group of monks in Beijing created a two-foot-high robot monk dispensing mantras and advice to attaining nirvana.
The
iPal — a companion of sorts for children — is the latest humanoid robot
to be marketed for family use, following in the footsteps of the
diminutive, wisecracking “Pepper” companion released by Japan’s SoftBank
in 2015.
The Keeko robots cost about 10,000 yuan ($1,500) — roughly equivalent to the monthly salary of a Chinese kindergarten teacher
But
Xie Yi, principal of the kindergarten where Keeko has been put on
trial, believes that it will be a long while before robots can
completely replace humans in the classroom.
“To teach you must
be able to interact, have a human touch, eye contact and facial
expressions. These are the things that make an education,” Xie said.
“It’s not just the language or the content, it’s everything.”
She
said the Keeko robots, which cost about 10,000 yuan ($1,500), or about
the monthly salary of a kindergarten teacher, may have some advantages
over a flesh-and-blood educator.
“The best thing about robots? They’re more stable (than humans),” she said with a laugh.
