According to the experts, STEAM - the acronym for Science, Technology, Arts and Mathematics- is an interdisciplinary learning approach that removes traditional barriers that keep young people away from science, technology, engineering and mathematics and integrates them into real-world, rigorous and relevant experiences for students (STEM Lesson Essentials, grades 3-8: Integrating science, technology, engineering and mathematics, Vasquez J., Schneider C., Comer M., Heinemann 2013). Over the past 10 years, STEAM has become synonymous with educational innovation in America, considering that several studies have shown its effectiveness in fostering the training of future specialists in increasingly strategic fields such as engineering and computer science. In the toy world, this new vision has attracted much interest: several companies have tried to rework the STEAM formula on a child's scale, offering monthly subscription kits composed of a series of fun experiments through which young children can unravel the scientific laws of the universe around them. While in the United States STEAM and all aspects related to it are now considered a trend, the Italian environment is still relatively barren: despite the fact that the European Union is trying to promote this new educational method through various initiatives, in particular Erasmus + and STEAM high school, in our country this concept seems to have not yet taken hold, both in the educational and playful spheres. The goal of the project described in this thesis is to develop a new line of STEAM boxes that can combine play and learning in an original way by filling an obvious market gap in Italy. The study was carried out on behalf of Tito e Toto, a small company specializing in the creation of Montessori-inspired children's toys, that decided to seize this new opportunity to evolve and develop a series of kits capable of taking a fundamental spot in the field of educational toys for children. STEAM philosophy would not have received its current interest if the research of the last decades, beginning in the early twentieth century, had not devoted more and more space to the study of play from sociological, anthropological, and even philosophical perspectives. Thanks to the emergence of the culture of game studies, today’s experts all agree on the fundamental value of playful activities for children's growth and cognitive development. Other studies, however, also denote that the children of the latest generations, digital natives and accustomed from early childhood to smart devices, are losing interest in the traditional toy in favor of video games at an increasingly early age. In response to this phenomenon, the global toy industry is moving decisively toward designing new toys that combine physicality with technology, to engage children as well as parents who are attentive to the traditional educational values of "real" toys. Building on this well-established trend, it was decided to go in search of an expansion of the initial design of traditional playpens to find an innovative way that was more in step with the times and market demand. The bridge connecting STEAM and the technology is Augmented Reality, which has reached a remarkable level of development in the world of gaming, as evidenced by the success of Pokemon Go, a game that has captivated millions of people around the world. The end point of the thesis is a game that includes a series of educational and scientific activities illustrated to children thanks to the magic of Augmented Reality, designed by combining the objectives that the STEAM concept proposes with the enormous possibilities offered by digital in the field of information. All of this without giving up manual dexterity and the experimentation of autonomously building old-fashioned games.
Secondo gli esperti, lo STEAM - acronimo di Science, Technology, Arts and Mathematics - è un approccio interdisciplinare di apprendimento, in grado di rimuovere le barriere tradizionali che allontanano i giovani dalle discipline scientifiche, tecnologiche, ingegneristiche e matematiche e le integra in esperienze reali, rigorose e rilevanti per gli studenti (STEM Lesson Essentials, grades 3-8: Integrating science, technology, engineering and mathematics, Vasquez J., Schneider C., Comer M., Heinemann 2013). Negli ultimi 10 anni, in America lo STEAM è diventato sinonimo di innovazione in campo educativo, considerando che diversi studi hanno dimostrato la sua efficacia nel favorire la formazione di futuri specialisti in settori sempre più strategici come l’ingegneria e l’informatica. Anche nel mondo del giocattolo, questa nuova visione ha suscitato molto interesse: diverse aziende hanno cercato di rielaborare la formula dello STEAM a misura di bambino, proponendo kit ludici a iscrizione mensile composti da una serie di esperimenti divertenti, attraverso i quali i più piccoli possono svelare le leggi scientifiche dell’universo che sta intorno a loro. Mentre negli Stati Uniti lo STEAM e tutti gli aspetti ad esso connessi sono ormai considerati un vero e proprio trend, l’ambiente italiano è ancora relativamente brullo: nonostante l’Unione Europea stia cercando di promuovere questo nuovo metodo educativo tramite diverse iniziative, in particolare l’Erasmus + e il liceo STEAM, nel nostro Paese questo concetto pare non aver ancora preso piede, in ambito sia educativo che ludico. L’obiettivo del progetto descritto in questa tesi è quello di dar vita a una nuova linea di scatole STEAM che possano unire in modo originale gioco e apprendimento colmando un evidente vuoto di mercato in Italia. Lo studio è stato portato avanti per conto dell’azienda Tito e Toto, una piccola realtà specializzata nella realizzazione di giocattoli per bambini di ispirazione montessoriana, che ha deciso di cogliere questa nuova opportunità per evolversi e mettere a punto una serie di kit in grado di collocarsi nel settore dei giocattoli educativi per l’infanzia. La filosofia STEAM non avrebbe riscosso l’interesse attuale se la ricerca degli ultimi decenni, a partire dagli inizi del Novecento, non avesse dedicato sempre più spazio allo studio del gioco dal punto di vista sociologico, antropologico e persino filosofico. Grazie alla nascita della cultura dei game studies, oggi gli esperti sono tutti concordi sul valore fondamentale dell’attività ludica per la crescita e lo sviluppo cognitivo del bambino. Gli studi degli esperti, però, denotano anche che i bimbi delle ultime generazioni, nativi digitali e abituati fin dalla prima infanzia agli smart device, stanno perdendo interesse verso il giocattolo tradizionale per prediligere sempre più precocemente i videogame. In risposta a questo fenomeno, la toy industry mondiale si sta orientando in maniera decisa verso la progettazione di nuovi giochi che uniscano la fisicità con la tecnologia, per coinvolgere i bimbi oltre che i genitori, attenti ai valori educativi tradizionali dei giocattoli “veri”. Partendo da questa tendenza ormai affermata, si è deciso di andare alla ricerca di un ampliamento del progetto iniziale di box tradizionali per individuare una strada innovativa più al passo con i tempi e con la richiesta del mercato. Il trait d’union tra STEAM e tecnologia adottato per questa revisione è la Realtà Aumentata, che ha raggiunto un livello di sviluppo notevole nel mondo del game, come dimostra il successo di Pokemon Go, un gioco che ha conquistato milioni di persone nel mondo. Il punto di arrivo della tesi è un gioco educativo che include una serie di attività didattiche e scientifiche illustrate ai bimbi grazie alla magia della Realtà Aumentata, studiato unendo gli obiettivi che si propone il concept STEAM alle enormi possibilità offerte dal digitale in ambito informativo. Tutto ciò senza rinunciare alla manualità e alla sperimentazione del costruire in autonomia dei giochi di un tempo.
Il kit delle invenzioni e Space Helpers: design di un giocattolo STEAM dalla tradizione alla realtà aumentata
Nidasi, Camilla
2021/2022
Abstract
According to the experts, STEAM - the acronym for Science, Technology, Arts and Mathematics- is an interdisciplinary learning approach that removes traditional barriers that keep young people away from science, technology, engineering and mathematics and integrates them into real-world, rigorous and relevant experiences for students (STEM Lesson Essentials, grades 3-8: Integrating science, technology, engineering and mathematics, Vasquez J., Schneider C., Comer M., Heinemann 2013). Over the past 10 years, STEAM has become synonymous with educational innovation in America, considering that several studies have shown its effectiveness in fostering the training of future specialists in increasingly strategic fields such as engineering and computer science. In the toy world, this new vision has attracted much interest: several companies have tried to rework the STEAM formula on a child's scale, offering monthly subscription kits composed of a series of fun experiments through which young children can unravel the scientific laws of the universe around them. While in the United States STEAM and all aspects related to it are now considered a trend, the Italian environment is still relatively barren: despite the fact that the European Union is trying to promote this new educational method through various initiatives, in particular Erasmus + and STEAM high school, in our country this concept seems to have not yet taken hold, both in the educational and playful spheres. The goal of the project described in this thesis is to develop a new line of STEAM boxes that can combine play and learning in an original way by filling an obvious market gap in Italy. The study was carried out on behalf of Tito e Toto, a small company specializing in the creation of Montessori-inspired children's toys, that decided to seize this new opportunity to evolve and develop a series of kits capable of taking a fundamental spot in the field of educational toys for children. STEAM philosophy would not have received its current interest if the research of the last decades, beginning in the early twentieth century, had not devoted more and more space to the study of play from sociological, anthropological, and even philosophical perspectives. Thanks to the emergence of the culture of game studies, today’s experts all agree on the fundamental value of playful activities for children's growth and cognitive development. Other studies, however, also denote that the children of the latest generations, digital natives and accustomed from early childhood to smart devices, are losing interest in the traditional toy in favor of video games at an increasingly early age. In response to this phenomenon, the global toy industry is moving decisively toward designing new toys that combine physicality with technology, to engage children as well as parents who are attentive to the traditional educational values of "real" toys. Building on this well-established trend, it was decided to go in search of an expansion of the initial design of traditional playpens to find an innovative way that was more in step with the times and market demand. The bridge connecting STEAM and the technology is Augmented Reality, which has reached a remarkable level of development in the world of gaming, as evidenced by the success of Pokemon Go, a game that has captivated millions of people around the world. The end point of the thesis is a game that includes a series of educational and scientific activities illustrated to children thanks to the magic of Augmented Reality, designed by combining the objectives that the STEAM concept proposes with the enormous possibilities offered by digital in the field of information. All of this without giving up manual dexterity and the experimentation of autonomously building old-fashioned games.| File | Dimensione | Formato | |
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2023_05_Nidasi_Il_kit_delle_invenzioni_e_Space_Helpers_Tesi_Magistrale.pdf
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https://hdl.handle.net/10589/203675