Broadening Participation in Computing

Why are some students “not into” computational thinking activities embedded within high school science units? Key takeaways from a microethnographic discourse analysis study

“…Furthermore, the formal and disconnected nature of standalone CS courses might overlook students' diverse and social ways of learning and knowing (Turkle & Papert, 1992). Female and BIPOC students report lower interest in CS because they see it as a discipline for male students from dominant communities (Gal-Ezer et al, 2009;Master et al, 2016;Scott et al, 2017). Some students also report that they prefer group work and collaboration, dislike sitting in front of a computer for extended time periods, and wish to pursue more people-oriented domains (Carter, 2006;DuBow & Pruitt, 2019).…”

“…Many contemporary initiatives implicitly assume that simply increasing female and BIPOC students' exposure to computing would be sufficient. However, recent studies suggest that more exposure does not automatically result in increased enjoyment of computing or motivation to learn more about computing (Ashcraft et al, 2017;Lang et al, 2015;Scott et al, 2017). Short-term interventions and specialized programs fail to increase female and BIPOC students' participation in computing (e.g., Sax et al, 2020;Scott et al, 2017;Wyatt et al, 2020).…”

“…However, recent studies suggest that more exposure does not automatically result in increased enjoyment of computing or motivation to learn more about computing (Ashcraft et al, 2017;Lang et al, 2015;Scott et al, 2017). Short-term interventions and specialized programs fail to increase female and BIPOC students' participation in computing (e.g., Sax et al, 2020;Scott et al, 2017;Wyatt et al, 2020). For example, a study by Sax et al (2020) concludes that the AP CS Principles (CSP) course, which was explicitly designed to increase diversity (see Wyatt et al, 2020), fails to broaden participation because it fails to attract meaningfully diverse cohorts and the students who take the CSP course report much lower interest in pursuing computing careers.…”

“…A significant implication of these initiatives is the need to tightly integrate computational thinking (CT) activities across science curricula because modern science increasingly relies on computational tools and methods (e.g., Denning, 2017;Sengupta et al, 2013;Weintrop et al, 2016;Wilensky et al, 2014). However, science who strive to integrate computing into their daily classroom instruction must contend with some of the critical issues surrounding equity and inclusion documented in the prior literature because research shows that computing education environments disproportionately favor White and Asian males while marginalizing female students and students of color (e.g., Kafai et al, 2020;Margolis, 2017;Pinkard, 2005;Scott et al, 2017). As computing is fast becoming a staple of science education, it is important to investigate the nature of students' engagement with CT activities embedded within science units if we are to train competent science teachers and design inclusive science learning environments.…”