Abstract:

Artificial intelligence and social robotics are increasingly influencing modern educational environments by enabling new forms of interactive and personalized learning. Social robots, when combined with generative AI models, can support conversational learning, provide immediate feedback, and create engaging classroom experiences.

This paper presents a teaching methodology and system architecture for integrating a Slovenian-speaking social robot into educational settings. The proposed approach combines a humanoid robot with generative artificial intelligence, speech synthesis, speech recognition, and educational content management to support interactive learning activities. The robot acts as a facilitator that guides students through questions, explanations, and collaborative tasks while maintaining natural conversation in the Slovenian language. The presented architecture includes several components: a generative AI language model responsible for dialogue generation, a speech processing module for real-time voice interaction, a knowledge management system for educational content, and a robot control interface that synchronizes verbal responses with gestures and physical expressions. This architecture enables adaptive communication between students and the robot, allowing it to respond dynamically to student questions and learning progress. In addition to the technical architecture, the paper outlines a teaching methodology that integrates the robot into classroom activities such as concept explanation, guided questioning, and interactive discussions. Early classroom experiences suggest that the presence of a social robot can enhance student participation, increase curiosity, and create a more engaging learning environment. The proposed framework demonstrates how generative AI and social robotics can be combined to support innovative teaching practices and highlights the potential of localized AI systems in smaller language communities.

Keywords:

Social robots, generative AI, AI in education, human-robot interaction, interactive learning.