Abstract
The present study evaluates the pedagogical potential of educational robotics as a tool for fostering value orientations among primary school students in Kazakhstan. Using a quasi-experimental mixed-methods design, 122 fourth-grade students from two urban schools were assigned to either an experimental group, which completed an 8-week “Robotics + Values” module, or a comparison group that followed a standard robotics curriculum. The intervention combined robotics activities with explicit tasks promoting collaboration, respect for shared resources, cultural identity, and public presentation. Findings revealed significant gains in cooperation, respect, and civic engagement for the experimental group compared to the control. Observational data confirmed more frequent peer assistance, respectful listening, and references to cultural themes, while reflective responses and teacher interviews indicated that these norms transferred beyond robotics classes. Based on the field data, a process model was proposed to illustrate how technical activities can progressively acquire social and cultural meaning, linking collaborative construction and programming with narrative localization and public recognition. The results suggest that educational robotics, when designed with intentional value integration, can serve a dual role in primary education: building Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) competencies and cultivating prosocial values. These findings contribute to global discussions on the integration of character education into STEM and provide practical guidance for curriculum innovation in contexts of digital transformation.