Engaging youth in computational thinking practices through designing place-based mobile games about local issues

Litts, Breanne Krystine; Lewis, Whitney E.; Mortensen, Chase K.

doi:10.1080/10494820.2019.1674883

Cited by 24 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…Ten of the studies used qualitative methods only, 11 studies used a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods, with only four studies using exclusively quantitative methods and having sample sizes of more than 300 students. Articles were related to STEM with some focusing on mathematics (Althauser and Harter, 2016;Walkington and Bernacki, 2019), science (Buck et al, 2016;Francis et al, 2016;Leonard et al, 2016;Rahmawati and Koul, 2016;Gates, 2017;Zimmerman and Weible, 2017;Fűz, 2018;Bølling et al, 2019;Flanagan et al, 2019;Herman et al, 2019;Iversen and Jónsdóttir, 2019;Kermish-Allen et al, 2019;Kinslow et al, 2019;McClain and Zimmerman, 2019;Zimmerman et al, 2019;Littrell et al, 2020a;Littrell et al, 2020b;Land et al, 2020), technology (Litts et al, 2020), and general community issues with links to STEM pedagogy (Donnison and Marshman, 2018;Ritter et al, 2019;Kim et al, 2020). While most studies approached localized learning by taking students to community and environmental contexts outside of the classroom, other studies connected students with experts and their communities through the internet (Kermish-Allen et al, 2019) or brought the outside world into classrooms through virtual reality (Ritter et al, 2019;Boda and Brown, 2020).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Many of the programs supported the development of students' socio-scientific reasoning skills and scientific literacy competencies (Kinslow et al, 2019). In many of the studies students worked in teams in undertaking community-based STEM projects (Francis et al, 2016;Rahmawati and Koul, 2016;Zimmerman and Weible, 2017;Donnison and Marshman, 2018;Flanagan et al, 2019;Litts et al, 2020). Team work enabled students to develop their ability to collaborate and work in productive team settings and to develop negotiation and shared responsibility (Francis et al, 2016;Rahmawati and Koul, 2016;Zimmerman and Weible, 2017;Donnison and Marshman, 2018;Flanagan et al, 2019).…”

Section: Development Of Students' Transferable Skillsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Linking K-12 STEM Pedagogy to Local Contexts: A Scoping Review of Benefits and Limitations

et al. 2021

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Student engagement and learning in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields in primary and secondary schools is increasingly being emphasized as the importance of STEM skills for future careers is realized. Localized learning has been identified as a group of pedagogical approaches that may enhance learning in STEM by making the relevance of STEM clear to students and providing stronger connections to students’ lives and contexts. This paper reports on a scoping review that was conducted to identify the benefits and limitations of localized learning in primary and secondary school STEM disciplines. A secondary aim of the review was to identify strategies that increase the effectiveness of localized learning these disciplines. Following literature searches of four databases, 1923 articles were identified. Twenty-five studies met the inclusion criteria. Potential benefits of localized learning included increases in enjoyment of STEM, improvements in learning, more positive STEM career aspirations, and development of transferable skills. The main challenges of these pedagogical approaches were time restrictions and lack of community involvement. Strategies for enhancing the impact of localized pedagogy included professional development for teachers (in STEM content knowledge, integration of localized pedagogy, and capacity to address socio-scientific issues), integration of technology, whole-school implementation of the pedagogical approach, and integration of the wider community into STEM education. These findings provide support for localized learning as an effective pedagogical approach to enhance STEM learning in schools, while emphasizing the critical roles of teachers and communities in supporting students to realize the relevance of STEM in their lives.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Development Of Students' Transferable Skillsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Linking K-12 STEM Pedagogy to Local Contexts: A Scoping Review of Benefits and Limitations

et al. 2021

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“…[A7] Neste trabalho, [Litts, Lewis e Mortensen 2019] investigam que aspectos do pensamento computacional jovens aprendem desenvolvendo jogos para celular em suas comunidades. No estudo conduzido em uma cidade rural dos Estados Unidos, após a realização de seis workshops de duas horas cada, os participantes deveriam desenvolver jogos para celular baseados em localização para compartilhar experiências sobre questões ambientais ou cotidianas, através da utilização da plataforma de programação Augmented Reality and Interactive Storytelling (ARIS).…”

Section: Resultsunclassified

A Realidade Aumentada em Situações de Aprendizagem na Educação Básica: Uma Revisão de Literatura

Rezende¹,

Gonçalves²,

Junior³

et al. 2021

Anais Do II Workshop Sobre as Implicações Da Computação Na Sociedade (WICS 2021)

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Os avanços tecnológicos estão cada vez mais presentes em diversos espaços sociais, entre eles o escolar. Neste trabalho, discutimos as potencialidades de recursos tecnológicos nos processos de ensino e aprendizagem e, mais especificamente, realizamos uma revisão de literatura com o objetivo de identificar como situações de aprendizagem envolvendo realidade aumentada na Educação Básica vêm sendo abordadas em produções científicas nos últimos dez anos. Os resultados apontam uma série de possibilidades envolvendo uso de tecnologias como smartphones, tablets e aplicativos específicos, especialmente no desenvolvimento de jogos baseados em localização e aprendizagem baseada em investigação.

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“…For example, in contrast to generic block‐based metaphor that uses color‐coded puzzle pieces, ARIS translates traditional computer science principles such as variables, conditional logic and flow control through narrative metaphors of “characters,” “events” and “scene transitions.” Furthermore, ARIS also allows youth to program with HTML or JavaScript as they become more comfortable with coding. We have explored elsewhere how this computational design process engaged youth with community (Litts, Lewis, & Mortensen, 2020; Searle, Casort, Litts, & Benson, 2017), but in this piece we address the cultural responsiveness of the computational tool itself, especially in regard to how it supports and/or inhibits the use of storytelling as a cultural practice.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Computing for all?: Examining critical biases in computational tools for learning

Litts¹,

Searle²,

Brayboy³

et al. 2020

Brit J Educational Tech

Self Cite

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Given the increased need for broadening participation in computing, there must be a focus not just on providing culturally relevant content but also on building accessible and inclusive computational tools. Most efforts to design culturally responsive computational tools redesign surface features, often through making nominal changes to add cultural meaning, yet the deeper structural design remains largely intact. We take a critical perspective towards novice programming environments to elucidate how the underlying structure privileges particular epistemologies and cultures. In this paper, we examine how the cultural practice of storytelling is supported and/or inhibited within novice programming tools. We draw upon the experiences of 38 Native American youth, who worked in teams to create place‐based, interactive stories and games for their community. Findings offer insights to the embedded cultural biases that exist in the structures of computational tools. We discuss insights for how to address cultural biases and promote deeper integration of cultural practices in future designs of culturally responsive computational tools. What is already known about this topic? Culturally responsive computing connects computing content heritage and vernacular cultural practices. “Black boxing,” or lack of transparency in how it works, in computational tools makes it difficult for novices to enter computing cultures. Design tools are embedded with particular ways of being, knowing, valuing and doing. What this paper adds? Thirty‐eight novice learners’ computational designs were shaped by the ways in which a computational tool privileged particular knowledge systems. Storytelling, as a critical cultural practice, especially in Indigenous cultures, is heavily constrained by the design structure of computational tools. Computational tools are cultural artifacts with deeply embedded epistemological, ontological and axiological biases, which directly frame what learners can do with these tools. Implications for practice Collaborative, community‐based design processes could mitigate the cultural biases that persist in computational tools. Transparency in computation tools in critical to broadening participation in computing cultures. Culturally responsive design of computational tools at the structural level is required to build inclusive computing cultures.

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Engaging youth in computational thinking practices through designing place-based mobile games about local issues

Cited by 24 publications

References 23 publications

Linking K-12 STEM Pedagogy to Local Contexts: A Scoping Review of Benefits and Limitations

Linking K-12 STEM Pedagogy to Local Contexts: A Scoping Review of Benefits and Limitations

A Realidade Aumentada em Situações de Aprendizagem na Educação Básica: Uma Revisão de Literatura

Computing for all?: Examining critical biases in computational tools for learning

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