Meet or Call my Robotic Tutor? - The Effect of a Physically vs. Virtually Present Social Robot on Learning Outcomes, Engagement and Perception

Remote learning has become increasingly popular since its unprecedented rise during the COVID-19 pandemic as it offers flexibility of location. Regarding the future of social robots in education and to find out more about the impact of their physical presence, it is necessary to investigate their application in remote learning scenarios. In this study, we set up a robot-supported learning environment in which students learned with a social robot either physically present or virtually present via a live video call. We found no differences in learning outcome and perception of the robot, but gaze towards the robot was significantly higher in the remote learning condition, implying that students might be more socially engaged with the robot or paying more attention to it. Our results demonstrate the potential of social robots as remote learning tools but even more the need for more research in this field.