Role of the Programmer

Creating a successful robot takes a team effort between humans and machines.

Because humans and machines do not speak the same language, a programming language must be
used to translate the necessary instructions from human to robot. Instructions written in
programming languages are called programs, or code. There are many different types of
programming languages.

How Programmers Program

The human who writes the program is called the programmer. Programmers don’t just sit down and
start writing code. Remember that programming is explaining to a computer what you want it to do.
For that, you must first have a clear idea of what it is you want the robot to do!

Step 1: Identify the problem. What does the robot need to accomplish through its actions?
Step 2: Describe a series of actions that solves the problem. The description should be specific,
but also flexible. It must also be specific enough for a robot to understand! Programmers use
pseudocoding and other strategies to help them come up with the necessary steps for a solution!

Step 3: Program the robot. Write the plan into a program that the robot can understand!
Step 4: Test and improve. The program will probably not work on the first try. Test every part of the
program and make fixes as needed!

Discuss
Consider the questions below, and then share your thoughts. 
 Do you think your “role as a programmer” changes depending on the task of the robot? 
 What role do programmers play in the real world? What do they program and what effect do
their programs have on daily life?