Cultivating Interest and Competencies in Computing Authentic Experiences and Design Factors (2021) / Chapter Skim
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3 How Learning Happens in Authentic Experiences for Computing
3 How Learning Happens in Authentic Experiences for Computing
Pages 33-50
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From page 33... ...
The chapter begins with a discussion of this framework, which articulates the underlying learning and development processes that are revealed in existing theories and conceptual models. Following this, the committee further elaborates on the framework, looking at both "internal" and "external" factors.
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From page 34... ...
These include recreational pursuits that learners engage in with peers such as laying p and tinkering with video games, activities supported in informal learning institutions such as libraries and after-school groups, as well as formal learning experiences in school. All four learners had "authentic" experiences in that they were embedded in valued social and cultural contexts, were personally meaningful and interest-driven, and included tools, skills, and practices that computing professionals engage in.
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From page 35... ...
Thus, the framework takes into account experiences beyond those in formal education to consider out-ofschool time learning environments as well as sites of play with peers, and community engagement where learners find personally meaningful ways of engaging with computing. The committee also emphasizes the bidirectional relationship of affective, cognitive, and behavioral outcomes with authentic learning contexts, which can also serve as key mediators that influence how learners identify with cultures and practices of computing and develop i nterests and a sense of belonging.
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From page 36... ...
Novelty, challenge, choice, active participation, and group work have been noted as key factors in triggering learners' initial situational interest (Renninger and Hidi, 2011)
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For example, Mitchell (1993) found that group work and interaction with puzzles and computers in mathematics classes triggered initial situational interest, while personal relevance of the content and active participation fostered and maintained longer lasting interest.
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From page 38... ...
recognized a need for an enhanced, intersectional computing identity theory that could allow for deeper understanding of how learners come to understand themselves as computer scientists. This theoretical framing could unpack why women and underrepresented learners continue to have difficulty identifying as computer scientists even when efforts are designed to be more inclusive.
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From page 39... ...
SOCIAL AND CULTURAL INFLUENCES ON AUTHENTIC LEARNING To elucidate the kinds of contexts that support authentic experiences, the committee drew from two different conceptual and theoretical literatures. The first is sociocultural and situated learning theory, which has developed a conceptual model for understanding how professional communities of practice support learning and belonging.
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From page 40... ...
This turn toward recognizing the situated nature of knowing and learning has contributed to interest in learning experiences that are authentic relative to professional communities of practice. Learner practices in designed learning experiences that are comparable to practices of professionals are central to authentic learning experiences in STEM broadly and computing more specifically (Chinn and Malhotra, 2002; Crawford, 2012; Kapon, Laherto, and Levrini, 2018)
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From page 41... ...
Additionally, it is believed that participation in activities that are authentic relative to professional STEM practices promotes situational interest, which in turn promotes a deeper sense of belonging within a community of practice (Moallem, Hung, and Dabbagh, 2019)
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From page 42... ...
Although the concept of communities of practice helps to explain some of the means through which young people begin to establish active patterns of participation in computing, it also raises concerns about equity and access, and reveals social and cultural influences on authentic learning in STEM and computing more specifically. New membership in communities of practice is largely defined by those who are already established pracitioners (Wenger, 1998)
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. Moreover, learners bring their own individual cultural meaning derived from their out-of-school experiences in homes, neighborhoods, and communities to the learning environment.
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Their study found that learning outcomes were better when learners engaged in the place-based simulation about their own local setting, suggesting that place plays a critical role in the impact of place-based education. Youth development benefits of place-based pedagogies include increased engagement in school and motivation for achievement (Athman and Monroe, 2004; Duffin, Powers, and Tremblay, 2004; Falco, 2004; Powers, 2004)
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From page 45... ...
Therefore, no single short-term experience alone is likely to change a person's life course or, at a systems level, to dramatically increase the participation of learners that have been underrepresented based on gender, race, ethnicity, or perceived ability working in computing. Recognizing this, researchers have articulated the importance of taking an ecosystems approach and examining the ways in which different kinds of experiences and supports in multiple settings over time reinforce each other to either build or undermine the development of interest, identity, and competency in a field of endeavor (Azevedo, 2018; Azevedo, diSessa, and Sherin, 2012; Barron, 2006; Bell et al., 2012; Bevan et al., 2010; Bransford et al., 2005; Crowley et al., 2015; Falk and Needham, 2011; Falk et al., 2015; Ito et al., 2013; Krishnamurthi et al., 2013; Mehus, Stevens, and Gringholm, 2010; NRC, 2015; Rahm, 2008; Traphagen and Traill, 2014)
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From page 46... ...
In some of Barron's case profiles, school experiences stimulated learners to seek technology learning experiences outside of school; in other cases, learning outside of school provided the impetus for a young person to take computing courses in school. The combination of learner initiative and broader support networks that included brokers to new opportunities contributed to the creation of technology learning opportunities.
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From page 47... ...
The importance of building social capital and relationships may be particularly important for connecting personally authentic learning experiences to professionally
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From page 48... ...
A growing body of research has documented personally relevant STEM learning experiences such as making and mathematics in the home culture and communities of groups underrepresented in STEM (Eglash et al., 2013; Nasir et al., 2006; Peppler, Sedas, and Dahn, 2020)
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From page 49... ...
To understand how authentic experiences may influence interest and competencies in computing, it is important to understand how learners develop interest and the mechanisms that promote interest and motivation to learn. Moreover, the framework focuses on the underlying learning and devel opment dynamics that are based upon existing theories and conceptual models, specifically, calling attention to sociocultural and situated learning.
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