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About

Rina Zviel-Girshin is a pioneering researcher in early childhood robotics education, whose work sits at the compelling intersection of technology, pedagogy, and child development. Her scholarship focuses on how robotics and programming experiences can be meaningfully integrated into kindergarten and early elementary settings to foster technological thinking, creativity, and STEM engagement in young learners. Her most influential contribution, "Robotics as a Tool to Enhance Technological Thinking in Early Childhood" (2020), has garnered 69 citations, establishing her as a leading voice in the field. Through her distinctive Early Age Robotics (EAR) program, Zviel-Girshin has conducted rigorous empirical and longitudinal studies — including the ROPEC study — examining children's genuine capabilities to read, write, and understand programming concepts. Her research also explores how inquiry-based robotics projects, such as a creative Moon Settlement challenge, cultivate problem-solving self-efficacy, collaborative attitudes, and scientific curiosity. Notably, she has extended her lens to include parental perspectives, recognizing families as essential stakeholders in early technology education. Across her body of work, Zviel-Girshin demonstrates that young children are far more capable of computational and creative thinking than traditionally assumed, reshaping expectations for early STEM education worldwide.