Abstract
(1) Background: Info-communication technology (ICT) offers opportunities for innovations
in teaching and learning methods, bringing significant changes in the world of pedagogy. The
field called educational robotics is both a motivational basis for teaching and learning coding and
programming, and a tool for linking STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)
fields. Moreover, it might contribute to the development of cognitive and social skills. The aim of
the present paper is to report on a pilot study at the intersection of neurodiversity and educational
robotics. (2) Methods: The pilot study was part of a larger project, namely Robotics for the Inclusive
Development of Atypical and Typical Children (RIDE). A pre-test/post-test design was used to exam-
ine the development of different cognitive processes in sixth-grade students, such as computational
thinking (CT), spatial relations, visuo-constructive ability, attention, and reading ability, in relation
to a robotics development program employed in the classroom. (3) Results: The results suggest
a general improvement on nearly all measures. Specifically, participants’ performance improved
significantly from pre-test to post-test in the visuo-constructive abilities test, they made significantly
fewer reading errors, and improved substantially in their reading comprehension. (4) Conclusions:
The RIDE project’s curriculum development has resulted in a highly innovative, sustainable, and
inclusive package of pedagogical methods, and the pilot research shows promising results regarding
the implementation of robotics in education.