What Parents and Educators Want from Robots: Insights from 100+ Interviews

A preprint summary of research submitted to IEEE by ALEO Robotics

Background

Parents and educators today face growing challenges. Parents struggle to balance careers and family life while affordable and reliable childcare options remain scarce. Educators face overcrowded classrooms, teacher shortages, and rising demands for personalized learning. The result is burnout at home and in schools, leaving children spending more time on screens and educators under constant pressure.

Research Insights

To better understand these challenges, ALEO Robotics conducted over 100 structured interviews with parents, teachers, and daycare providers. The study revealed clear patterns:

• Time & Task Overload: 70% of parents cited lack of time as their biggest constraint.

• Emotional Strain: Over half reported difficulty managing stress and staying emotionally consistent.

• Entertainment & Education: 51% struggled to engage and educate children meaningfully.

• Behavior & Attention: 47% of educators emphasized the challenge of keeping students engaged and motivated.

• Individualized Education: 33% highlighted the need for tools that adapt to each student’s strengths and needs.

What Parents and Educators Want from Robots

When asked about features, parents emphasized five clear priorities:

• Learning Support (78%) – Personalized education, from homework help to language development.

• Interactive Play (61%) – Ability to play active, screen-free games.

• Safety Monitoring (51%) – Real-time video/audio monitoring and environmental alerts.

• Emotional Support (27%) – A “motivator” to calm not only children, but parents, recognize emotions, and support positive behavior.

• Scheduling & Reminders (22%) – A child-focused version of Alexa/Siri to track routines and progress.

Educators emphasized five clear priorities:

• Motivation & Engagement (54%) – Tools to help students focus and stay on task.

• Classroom Assistance (54%) – Preparing materials, assessing work, and generating reports.

• Individualized Education (45%) – Tailored instruction aligned to each child’s level and needs.

• Progress Tracking (36%) – Identifying strengths, gaps, and reporting development.

• Scheduling & Reminders (33%) – Organizing tasks, routines, and assessments for students.

Our Response: ALEO Robotics

At ALEO Robotics, we are building a mobile AI-powered assistant robot designed to respond directly to these needs. ALEO is:

• Child-Centered: Built for play, learning, and engagement.

• Practical: Supports with scheduling, safety monitoring, and progress tracking.

• Safe & Ethical: Designed with child psychology advisors to ensure trust and well-being.

• Accessible: Aimed at affordability for both families and schools.

Our vision is not to replace parents or teachers but to provide an “extra set of hands” — reducing burnout while enhancing children’s education, engagement, and emotional growth.

Note

This summary is based on research submitted to IEEE. The final published version may differ.