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1. Why Do Students Enroll in AP CSP?

   https://doi.org/10.1109/RESPECT51740.2021.9620546  

   Mark, June ; Zeringue, Julie Koehler ; Klein, K. ; Mitchell, Tunisia ; Olivares, José A. ( January 2021 , RESPECT 2021 Conference Proceedings)

   CS4All initiatives nationwide have been working to increase and diversify student participation in computer science (CS). One intentional effort to broaden participation in CS was the launch of the Advanced Placement (AP) CS Principles (CSP) course, which sought to increase the number of students enrolling in CS overall as well as from groups historically underrepresented in CS. Early AP CSP implementation results are encouraging and have identified the need to better understand essential supports for quality implementation, differential student experiences and outcomes, and students’ motivations for course enrollment. In this paper, we explore the motivations that affect student decisions to take AP CSP using survey data collected during fall 2019 in the New York City public schools, the largest school district in the U.S. This work is part of an ongoing research-practice partnership that provides teacher and school supports for AP CSP implementation and aims to improve outcomes especially for female, Black, and Latinx students in high-need schools. In particular, we examine how students’ reasons and influences for enrolling in AP CSP may differ based on self-identified gender and race/ethnicity. Our findings indicate that while most students shared an interest in learning more about CS, students from communities historically underrepresented in computing are more likely to report being placed in the course and to be influenced by guidance counselors. The implications of these results highlight the importance of understanding why students choose AP CSP in developing recruitment resources, student engagement strategies, and supports for implementation. 

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2. ZORQ: A Gamification Framework for Computer Science Education

   Hastings, J. ( July 2022 , IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference (FIE))

   This research paper introduces a unique system called ZORQ that is a combination of a game development frame- work and a gamification framework (GDGF). The ZORQ GDGF acts as a catalyst to help motivate students by increasing student engagement and success within undergraduate Computer Science (CS) education, regardless of student experience and background. The dynamic gamification elements utilized within the GDGF make it an attractive learning method for students. After col- laborative game space customization, ZORQ gameplay sees each student tasked with designing a ship movement philosophy and then implementing their own code to autonomously control the ship in an interstellar game space filled with supplies, obstacles, and enemy ships. The particulars of engagements between ships can vary greatly by semester, along with the resources/objects present in the game, depending on the collaborative customization and the independent ship strategies implemented. A preliminary Z O R Q trial was conducted over five years in an undergraduate Data Structures and Algorithms (DSA) course. The ZORQ trial is designed to fulfill the following objectives: 1) implement DSA concepts discussed within the course, 2) identify appropriate problem-solving approaches, 3) apply one or more solutions, 4) build depth with a coding language, 5) bridge the gap between limited concept assignments and large, multi-developer software systems by allowing students to build code within a larger architecture, 6) introduce students to version control, 7) illustrate the use of prior mathematics coursework in practical applications, and 8) introduce unit testing in software systems.In exit surveys, students expressed overwhelming satisfaction with this approach. More than 84% of the students surveyed found the system useful in their educational experience and saw benefit to inspecting a completed software project. 82% of the students found that Z O R Q increased software development com- prehension. 80% enjoyed using their own personal creativity in designing a ship controller, 76% found ZORQ helped them learn how to implement and use DSAs. 71% found the system engaging and found the system interaction to be clear and understandable. Observations of student performance in later courses suggest better student maturity and comprehension in preparation for proposing and implementing their own independent projects. 

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3. All the Pieces Matter: The Relationship of Momentary Self-efficacy and Affective Experiences with CS1 Achievement and Interest in Computing

   https://doi.org/10.1145/3446871.3469740  

   Lishinski, Alex ; Rosenberg, Joshua ( August 2021 , Proceedings of the 17th ACM Conference on International Computing Education Research)

   Ko, A. K. (Ed.)

   There are significant participation gaps in computing, and the way to address these participation gaps lies not simply in getting students from underrepresented groups into a CS1 classroom, but supporting students to pursue their interest in computing further beyond CS1. There are many factors that may influence students’ pursuit of computing beyond introductory courses, including their sense that they can do what CS courses require of them (their self-efficacy) and positive emotional experiences in CS courses. When interest has been addressed in computing education, research has treated it mostly as an outcome of particular pedagogical approaches or curricula; what has not been studied is how students’ longer-term interest develops through more granular experiences that students have as they begin to engage with computing. In this paper, we present the results of a study designed to investigate how students’ interest in computing develops as a product of their momentary self-efficacy and affective experiences. Using a methodology that is relatively uncommon to computer science education—the experience sampling method, which involves frequently asking students brief, unobtrusive questions about their experiences—we surveyed CS1 students every week over the course of a semester to capture the nuances of their experiences. 74 CS1 students responded 14-18 times over the course of a semester about their self-efficacy, frustration, and situational interest. With this data, we used a multivariate, multi-level statistical model that allowed us to estimate how students’ granular, momentary experiences (measured through the experience sampling method surveys) and initial interest, self-efficacy, and self-reported gender (measured through traditional surveys) relate to their longer-term interest and achievement in the course. We found that students’ momentary experiences have a significant impact on their interest in computing and course outcomes, even controlling for the self-efficacy and interest students reported at the beginning of the semester. We also found significant gender differences in students’ momentary experiences, however, these were reduced substantially when students’ self-efficacy was added to the model, suggesting that gender gaps could instead be self-efficacy gaps. These results suggest that students’ momentary experiences in CS1, how they experience the course week to week, have an impact on their longer-term interest and learning outcomes. Furthermore, we found that male and female students reported different experiences, suggesting that improving the CS1 experiences that students have could help to close gender-related participation gaps. In all, this study shows that the granular experiences students have in CS1 matter for key outcomes of interest to computing education researchers and educators and that the experience sampling method, more common in fields adjacent to computer science education, provides one way for researchers to integrate the experiences students have into our accounts of why students become interested in computing. 

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4. Black Women Speak: Examining Power, Privilege, and Identity in CS Education

   https://doi.org/10.1145/3451344  

   Rankin, Yolanda A. ; Thomas, Jakita O. ; Erete, Sheena ( December 2021 , ACM Transactions on Computing Education)

   Despite the increasing number of women receiving bachelor’s degrees in computing (i.e., Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Information Technology, etc.), a closer look reveals that the percentage of Black women in computing has significantly dropped in recent years, highlighting the underrepresentation of Black women and its negative impact on broadening participation in the field of computing. The literature reveals that several K-16 interventions have been designed to increase the representation of Black women and girls in computing. Despite these best efforts, the needle seems to have barely moved in increasing the representation or the retention of Black women in computing. Instead, the primary goals have been to recruit and retain women in the CS pipeline using gender-focused efforts intended to increase the number of women who also identify as members of racialized groups. However, these gender-focused efforts have fallen short of increasing the number of Black women in computing because they fail to acknowledge or appreciate how intersectionality (the overlapping social constructs of gender, race, ethnicity, class, etc.) has shaped the lived experiences of Black women navigating the computing pipeline. Without honest dialogue about how power operates in the field of computing, the push for racial equality and social justice in CS education remains an elusive goal. Leveraging intersectionality as a critical framework to address systemic oppression (i.e., racism, gender discrimination, power, and privilege), we interview 24 Black women in different phases of the computing pipeline about their experiences navigating the field of computing. An intersectional analysis of Black women’s experiences reveals that CS education consists of saturated sites of violence in which interconnected systems of power converge to enact oppression. Findings reveal three primary saturated sites of violence within CS education: (1) traditional K-12 classrooms; (2) predominantly White institutions; and (3) internships as supplementary learning experiences. We conclude the article with implications for how the field of CS education can begin to address racial inequality that negatively impacts Black girls and women, thus contributing to a more equitable and socially just field of study that benefits all students.

    

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5. Work in Progress: Interactive Introductory Online Modules on Wireless Communications and Radio-frequency Spectrum Sharing

   Dietrich, C. B. ; Polys, N. F. ; Reid, K. ; García Sheridan, J. A. ; Emenonye, D. ; Gomez, X. ; Tolley, J. ; Makin, C. ; Gaeddert, J. ( July 2021 , ASEE Annual Conference proceedings)

   1. Description of the objectives and motivation for the contribution to ECE education The demand for wireless data transmission capacity is increasing rapidly and this growth is expected to continue due to ongoing prevalence of cellular phones and new and emerging bandwidth-intensive applications that encompass high-definition video, unmanned aerial systems (UAS), intelligent transportation systems (ITS) including autonomous vehicles, and others. Meanwhile, vital military and public safety applications also depend on access to the radio frequency spectrum. To meet these demands, the US federal government is beginning to move from the proven but inefficient model of exclusive frequency assignments to a more-efficient, shared-spectrum approach in some bands of the radio frequency spectrum. A STEM workforce that understands the radio frequency spectrum and applications that use the spectrum is needed to further increase spectrum efficiency and cost-effectiveness of wireless systems over the next several decades to meet anticipated and unanticipated increases in wireless data capacity. 2. Relevant background including literature search examples if appropriate CISCO Systems’ annual survey indicates continued strong growth in demand for wireless data capacity. Meanwhile, undergraduate electrical and computer engineering courses in communication systems, electromagnetics, and networks tend to emphasize mathematical and theoretical fundamentals and higher-layer protocols, with less focus on fundamental concepts that are more specific to radio frequency wireless systems, including the physical and media access control layers of wireless communication systems and networks. An efficient way is needed to introduce basic RF system and spectrum concepts to undergraduate engineering students in courses such as those mentioned above who are unable to, or had not planned to take a full course in radio frequency / microwave engineering or wireless systems and networks. We have developed a series of interactive online modules that introduce concepts fundamental to wireless communications, the radio frequency spectrum, and spectrum sharing, and seek to present these concepts in context. The modules include interactive, JavaScript-based simulation exercises intended to reinforce the concepts that are presented in the modules through narrated slide presentations, text, and external links. Additional modules in development will introduce advanced undergraduate and graduate students and STEM professionals to configuration and programming of adaptive frequency-agile radios and spectrum management systems that can operate efficiently in congested radio frequency environments. Simulation exercises developed for the advanced modules allow both manual and automatic control of simulated radio links in timed, game-like simulations, and some exercises will enable students to select from among multiple pre-coded controller strategies and optionally edit the code before running the timed simulation. Additionally, we have developed infrastructure for running remote laboratory experiments that can also be embedded within the online modules, including a web-based user interface, an experiment management framework, and software defined radio (SDR) application software that runs in a wireless testbed initially developed for research. Although these experiments rely on limited hardware resources and introduce additional logistical considerations, they provide additional realism that may further challenge and motivate students. 3. Description of any assessment methods used to evaluate the effectiveness of the contribution, Each set of modules is preceded and followed by a survey. Each individual module is preceded by a quiz and followed by another quiz, with pre- and post-quiz questions drawn from the same pool. The pre-surveys allow students to opt in or out of having their survey and quiz results used anonymously in research. 4. Statement of results. The initial modules have been and are being used by three groups of students: (1) students in an undergraduate Introduction to Communication Systems course; (2) an interdisciplinary group of engineering students, including computer science students, who are participating in related undergraduate research project; and (3) students in a graduate-level communications course that includes both electrical and computer engineers. Analysis of results from the first group of students showed statistically significant increases from pre-quiz to post-quiz for each of four modules on fundamental wireless communication concepts. Results for the other students have not yet been analyzed, but also appear to show substantial pre-quiz to post-quiz increases in mean scores. 

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