The Effect of Applying Humanoid Robots as Teacher Assistants to Help Iranian Autistic Pupils Learn English as a Foreign Language

Abstract

The present case study investigated the effect of applying a humanoid robot as a teacher assistant to teach a foreign language (English in this case) to Iranian children with autism. To do this, there were 4 male autistic children, 7–9 years old, 3 with high-functioning autism and one with low-functioning autism. The humanoid robot NAO was used as the main instrument of this study. There were 12 sessions including 10 teaching sessions. This study used a pre-test, mid-test, immediate post-test, and delayed post-test design to measure the learning gains of the autistic children participating in the robot-assisted language learning (RALL) program. The results showed the subjects’ large learning gains which were fairly persistent according to their performances on the delayed post-test. The difference observed between the learning gains of the high-functioning and low-functioning participants is also discussed.