Cultivating Interest and Competencies in Computing Authentic Experiences and Design Factors (2021) / Chapter Skim
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4 Authentic Experiences for Computing: Reviewing the Impact
4 Authentic Experiences for Computing: Reviewing the Impact
Pages 51-70
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From page 51... ...
However, it is valuable to understand what is currently known about the impact of authentic experiences in computing more broadly, given current attention to these approaches. Many of the studies reviewed are still in exploratory or early stages of the research.
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From page 52... ...
Knowledge In this section, the committee considers studies that examine how and to what extent authentic experiences in computing support development and improvement of knowledge outcomes. The interventions and programs studied used different platforms, and different types of technology (e.g.,
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Following an intensive summer professional development experience, teachers co- developed then field tested unplugged, integrated computational thinking lessons with learners in a summer camp. The following academic year teachers implemented the activities in their regular school day classrooms.
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High school learners' (n = 95) perceptions of the need for creativity and problem-solving skills in STEM fields, particularly engineering, increased somewhat after a 2-week summer camp featuring experiences with modeling in 3D CAD software and printing 3D artifacts (Bicer et al., 2017)
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From page 55... ...
The distinction between computing skills and computational thinking skills is not consistent across the studies reviewed; some authors considered computing skills as a component of computational thinking whereas others view computing and computational thinking as independent topics. Elementary-age Learners Kazakoff and Bers (2012)
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From page 56... ...
The results suggest that earners, l regardless of their background, can exercise the computational thinking skills to walk through the process of identifying a problem to solve in the form of a functional product. In a study of high school learners, participating in two summer academies with computational thinking enhanced maker activities.
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From page 57... ...
Outcomes in the computational thinking skills category included using computational thinking, recognizing computational thinking, and identifying problems to be solved through computational thinking, whereas outcomes in the computing skills category included computer programming, debugging, and commenting; analyzing technical requirements; and designing for inter ction. a Meta-cognitive skills such as planning and choosing appropriate strategies for a solution; monitoring one's work and thinking about how to improve it; and evaluating one's work were also reported.
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From page 58... ...
It is important to note that most of the studies reviewed had sample sizes that ranged from 10 to 100 students; however, a few selfefficacy studies noted larger sample sizes. Interest In the studies reviewed, interest was typically measured through the use of self-report surveys that asked participants direct questions about their perceptions of the experiences and their inclinations to pursue future computing activities.
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(2009) examined outcomes for 25 middle school learners in a workshopstyle summer camp activity that lasted 5 days and covered electronic circuit theory, t-shirt circuit design, integrated circuits, and programming.
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The s long-term goals of this project were for participants to create products u sing 3-D modeling software and printers, develop software and embedded applications, enhance computational thinking skills, and pursue related entrepreneurial ventures. Data were collected through a participant survey and observations by an external team.
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Two studies focused on the Digital Youth Divas project, an out-ofschool program that seeks to engage young girls (predominantly Black and Latina learners) in design-based engineering and computing activities.
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Through qualitative analysis of in-person observations of the design sessions, summaries of the girls' online activities, and semi-structured interviews with the participating girls, the researchers found evidence that narratives motivated girls to continue with challenging STEM activities and STEM identity development. The details presented through the characters in the narratives created opportunities for the participants to reveal their stereotypes and awareness of limiting gender, racial, and intersectional and multiple identities in the narratives' storylines.
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developed a 2-week summer camp for high school learners that provided rigorous instruction and hands-on engineering tasks designed to solve everyday problems. Some of the engineering tasks included building a line-following robot and fabricating a fiber optic voice link.
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Data were collected via self-reported pre- and post-treatment surveys; cyber ecurity s engagement and self-efficacy survey; weekly learner journals; and observation. Several of the studies reported increases in learner self-efficacy following participation in a variety of hands-on, potentially authentic, computing experiences (Amo et al., 2019; Barker et al., 2018; Jagiela et al., 2018; Nugent et al., 2016; 2019; Stapleton et al., 2019)
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(2016) examined how multiple versions of their robotics program across 8 years -- delivered through summer camps, academic year clubs, and robotics competitions -- supported middle school learners in STEM learning and motivation.
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Participation in robotics camps, clubs, and competitions tended to increase learner self confidence in performing robotics tasks. Participants showed gains in self-efficacy as they accumulated experience in writing programs to control their robot's actions effectively.
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From page 67... ...
One of these, ARQuest, is a mobile augmented reality game for middleschool learners. ARQuest blends game play and game design activities with real-time feedback intended to build computational thinking skills (Gardeli and Vosinakis, 2019)
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From page 68... ...
There are too few learners exiting high schools with the skills required to pursue computing majors in college, and many who have the skills lack the interest and/or self-confidence to enter computing majors. This suggests the importance of finding ways to increase the likelihood that more of those who gain exposure and have
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From page 69... ...
(2020) studies focused on high school learners who had taken a computing class that incorporated EarSketch (DRK studies of a 2015–2016 and a 2016–2017 cohort)
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This discussion of research on the outcomes of authentic experiences in computing lead to several insights. There is substantial variability in the settings and measures making standardization in terms of measures and interventions difficult.
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