ERIC Number: EJ1175967
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2017
Pages: 22
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0899 3408
EISSN: N/A
Computational Communities: African-American Cultural Capital in Computer Science Education
Lachney, Michael
Computer Science Education, v27 n3-4 p175-196 2017
Enrolling the cultural capital of underrepresented communities in PK-12 technology and curriculum design has been a primary strategy for broadening the participation of students of color in U.S. computer science (CS) fields. This article examines two ways that African-American cultural capital and computing can be bridged in CS education. The first is "community representation," using cultural capital to highlight students' social identities and networks through computational thinking. The second, "computational integration," locates computation in cultural capital itself. I survey two risks--the appearance of shallow computing and the reproduction of assimilationist logics--that may arise when constructing one bridge without the other. To avoid these risks, I introduce the concept of "computational communities" by exploring areas in CS education that employ both strategies. This concept is then grounded in qualitative data from an after school program that connected CS to African-American cosmetology.
Descriptors: African American Students, Cosmetology, Cultural Capital, Computer Science Education, Ethnography, Audio Equipment, Video Technology, Documentation, African American Culture, African American Community, Socioeconomic Status, Programming, Computer Uses in Education, Educational Technology, Vocational Education, High Schools, Participatory Research
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: High Schools
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: National Science Foundation (NSF)
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: New York
Grant or Contract Numbers: DRL1640014