Play-Testing REMind: Evaluating an Educational Robot-Mediated Role-Play Game

Synthesis: Sanoubari, Fernandes, Rebello, Pan, Houston, and Dautenhahn (2026) present REMind, an educational robot-mediated role-play game designed to support anti-bullying bystander intervention among children. REMind invites players to observe a bullying scenario enacted by social robots, reflect on the perspectives of the characters, and rehearse defending strategies by puppeteering a robotic avatar. Evaluated through a mixed-methods play-testing study with 18 children aged 9–10, the findings suggest the experience supported learning goals related to self-efficacy, perspective-taking, understanding outcomes of defending, and intervention strategies — highlighting Robot-Mediated Applied Drama (RMAD) as a novel pedagogical framework for social-emotional learning.

Key Findings

Study Design & Method

This is a mixed-methods play-testing study. The researchers designed REMind, an educational robot-mediated role-play game for anti-bullying bystander intervention, and evaluated it with 18 children aged 9–10. In the game, children observed bullying scenarios enacted by social robots, reflected on the perspectives of the characters, and rehearsed defending strategies by puppeteering a robotic avatar. Mixed-methods data collection assessed the experience's support for learning goals including self-efficacy, perspective-taking, understanding outcomes of defending, and intervention strategies.

Implications for AI in Education

REMind demonstrates how Social Robots can support Social Emotional Learning through embodied role-play, introducing Robot-Mediated Applied Drama (RMAD) as a pedagogical framework. By letting children rehearse anti-bullying bystander intervention strategies in a safe, embodied context, the approach builds Self Efficacy, perspective-taking, and empathy in K 12 settings. It connects to Educational Robotics, role-play/game-based learning, and the use of embodied AI to address social and emotional learning outcomes — a distinct application beyond technical/programming robotics education.

Limitations

The evaluation involved a small sample (18 children aged 9–10) in a play-testing context, limiting generalizability and evidence for sustained behavior change. The focus is on learning-goal support during the experience rather than long-term anti-bullying outcomes. The robot-mediated role-play setup requires specific hardware and facilitation.

Connected Concepts

Connected Articles

Citation

Sanoubari, E., Fernandes, N., Rebello, K., Pan, A., Houston, A., & Dautenhahn, K. (2026). Play-testing REMind: Evaluating an educational robot-mediated role-play game. arXiv:2604.00300.