The research presented reports on the qualitative analysis of a laboratory study in which 31 novices work with the Arduino for the first time.
Drawing from over 50 interviews with diverse individuals who identify as makers we explored ways that communities were shaped the physical or online structures they occupy and a shared understanding of behaviors within the community.
Within this study, we examine the transparency and affordances for interaction of the physical computing hardware tools. Using our findings from this examination, we layout a framework that outlines spectrum of modularity that can be provided to facilitate learning with maker kits.
In this chapter, we explore how participatory design has shaped our interest-driven learning experiences into value-driven learning experiences. Using two case studies, we demonstrate how traditional participatory design practices and a meta-design approach to participatory design can help craft value-driven learning that enables students to navigate seemingly countervailing values, nurtures their interests, and creates supportive contexts in which to pursue those interests.
We administer two versions of an assessment targeting concepts in direct current (DC) circuits in which students talked through their reasoning. One version represents the circuits as conventional symbolic diagrams, and the other version represents the circuits using physical circuit components connected with wires and solder.
In this paper, we introduce BitBlox, a set of modular, solderless Breadboards for prototyping circuits. BitBlox attempts to decrease the cognitive load on the user by reducing the complexity found in the standard Breadboard by bringing visibility to the underlying connections within its modules.
Many educational interventions involving computer science and engineering have created interdisciplinary educational experiences to contextualize the learning. Computing projects in these environments are often collaborative and require students with varying backgrounds and perspectives to work together. We propose that the coordination between the participants is facilitated in the presence of their differences through the computational artifacts they create, which serve as boundary objects.
The MoveLab was an educational research intervention centering on a community of African American and Hispanic girls as they began to transform their self-concept in relation to computing and dance while creating technology enhanced dance performances.