From Play to Programming: A PRISMA-SPIDER Review of Educational Robotics for Computational Thinking and an Exploratory Study of Indian Parents

Abstract

Digital technologies are increasingly embedded in young children’s daily lives, making early childhood education (ECE) an important context for examining developmentally appropriate methods for technology integration. Educational robotics (ER) has emerged as a promising pedagogical approach for fostering computational thinking (CT) among children aged 3 to 6 years. While existing studies have primarily examined ER within classroom settings, the role of parents in influencing children’s early technology engagement has received comparatively little scholarly attention. This study connects a systematic review of the empirical literature with an exploratory account of parental perspectives on ER acceptance, an intersection that remains underexamined in Indian ECE scholarship. The study addresses these gaps through a PRISMA-guided systematic literature review using the SPIDER framework, analyzing 28 empirical studies across sample characteristics, phenomena of interest, research design, evaluation, and research types. The analysis identifies four thematic patterns: Teacher Training and Pedagogical Methodologies; Developmental Pathways and Cognitive Outcomes; Socio-Emotional and Collaborative Dimension; and Implementation Challenges. To ground these themes in lived experience, perspectives from four Indian parents were purposively gathered and interpreted through the Almere model. As socio-technological gatekeepers, parents shape early childhood ER adoption, mediation, and use, though these insights remain preliminary. This review advances understanding of CT development in ECE, while the parent interviews offer an initial, exploratory perspective, informing researchers, teachers, and policymakers seeking developmentally grounded robotics integration.