With more recognition being given to the diverse and changing demographics in education, there is a need to understand how well computer science education is meeting the needs of all learners as it starts to infiltrate K-12 schools. The CAPE framework is a newer model for assessing the equitable delivery of computer science education and can be used to understand a school’s capacity to offer equitable computer science (CS) education, equitable student access to CS education, equitable student participation in CS, and equitable experiences of students taking CS. Since the CAPE framework is a new way to research CS education through an equity-lens, there are few, if any, frameworks that can be leveraged to explore research questions in a complex, multi-school intervention. To address this gap, we used a design-based research approach to create and determine the feasibility of a new model, Theory of Impacts, informed by the CAPE framework (the ToI-CAPE model), for evaluating a multi-school intervention. In this article, we provide a detailed explanation of creating and using the ToI-CAPE model for a specific intervention and the feasibility of using ToI-CAPE across factors based in experiences and how to use this model in other research and evaluation projects. Overall, the use of the ToI-CAPE model can be used to shed light on the critical subcomponents and agents at work in the intervention and the actions necessary across these components and agents to support intended outcomes.
more »
« less
An Extended Framework of Factors Across CAPE that Support K-12 Computer Science Education
Within K-12 computing education, the building blocks that contribute to student success and equitable outcomes are broadly captured in the CAPE framework (i.e., capacity, access, participation, experience). However, these broad com- ponents provide limited detail on the important factors that can support academic achievement, particularly within each component. Our research question for this study was: What are factors comprising each component of CAPE that support academic achievement among K-12 CS students?To answer this question, we first created an a priori set of factors based on previous research findings that have been found to contribute to academic achievement. After organizing these factors within each CAPE component, we conducted a systematic mapping review of K-12 CS education research (2019-2021) (n = 196) from publicly available peer-reviewed articles from the K-12 CS Education Research Resource Center. Through this mapping, we identified an additional set of factors that have been studied by CS education researchers and added these to our set of factors. More importantly, we found that capacity was the component investigated the most frequently and access was the least. There are many areas (or categories) within each component that remain unstudied (i.e., dual credit offerings, career guidance), even though they play a role in computing education. The expanded CAPE framework is now publicly available and can be used to inform researchers and practitioners about what each CAPE component comprises. These factors are accompanied by descriptions of each factor. Not only does it highlight the many factors to be considered when designing and delivering computing education to K-12 students, it also provides a solid framework for future research that synthesizes or analyzes homogeneous factors or explores how various factors may be correlated.
more »
« less
- PAR ID:
- 10528177
- Publisher / Repository:
- IEEE
- Date Published:
- ISBN:
- 979-8-3503-6151-3
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 1642 to 1648
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Location:
- Las Vegas, NV, USA
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
-
Hartshone, R (Ed.)This landscape study explored structural barriers to diversity in computing education by focusing on Computer Science Education State Supervisors (CSEdSS) in state education agencies. Positioned in 41 states, CSEdSS play a crucial role in ensuring equitable access to K-12 CS learning pathways. Despite efforts to expand CS education policy, equity issues in access persist. Based on a survey of CSEdSS (n=32) with a 78% response rate, we applied the Capacity for, Access to, Participation in, and Experience of (CAPE) Framework to analyze CSEdSS survey responses to questions about how they enact their role and the ways in which equity in CS education impacts their work. Findings revealed that CSEdSS leveraged the opportunities available to them to build capacity and advance equitable access to CS education across diverse state contexts, even as they navigated systems that present challenges to equitable implementation. The results highlighted the importance of using a critical analysis approach to interrogate policy enactment through a sociocultural and systems-based lens, addressing the complexities of implementing CS education policies at macrosystem, mesosystem, and microsystem levels to support inclusive and equitable pathways in CS education.more » « less
-
Research Problem. Computer science (CS) education researchers conducting studies that target high school students have likely seen their studies impacted by COVID-19. Interpreting research findings impacted by COVID-19 presents unique challenges that will require a deeper understanding as to how the pandemic has affected underserved and underrepresented students studying or unable to study computing. Research Question. Our research question for this study was: In what ways has the high school computer science educational ecosystem for students been impacted by COVID-19, particularly when comparing schools based on relative socioeconomic status of a majority of students? Methodology. We used an exploratory sequential mixed methods study to understand the types of impacts high school CS educators have seen in their practice over the past year using the CAPE theoretical dissaggregation framework to measure schools’ Capacity to offer CS, student Access to CS education, student Participation in CS, and Experiences of students taking CS. Data Collection Procedure. We developed an instrument to collect qualitative data from open-ended questions, then collected data from CS high school educators (n = 21) and coded them across CAPE. We used the codes to create a quantitative instrument. We collected data from a wider set of CS high school educators ( n = 185), analyzed the data, and considered how these findings shape research conducted over the last year. Findings. Overall, practitioner perspectives revealed that capacity for CS Funding, Policy & Curriculum in both types of schools grew during the pandemic, while the capacity to offer physical and human resources decreased. While access to extracurricular activities decreased, there was still a significant increase in the number of CS courses offered. Fewer girls took CS courses and attendance decreased. Student learning and engagement in CS courses were significantly impacted, while other noncognitive factors like interest in CS and relevance of technology saw increases. Practitioner perspectives also indicated that schools serving students from lower-income families had 1) a greater decrease in the number of students who received information about CS/CTE pathways; 2) a greater decrease in the number of girls enrolled in CS classes; 3) a greater decrease in the number of students receiving college credit for dual-credit CS courses; 4) a greater decrease in student attendance; and 5) a greater decrease in the number of students interested in taking additional CS courses. On the flip-side, schools serving students from higher income families had significantly higher increases in the number of students interested in taking additional CS courses.more » « less
-
Problem. To investigate and identify promising practices in eq- uitable K-12 and tertiary computer science (CS) education, the capacity for education researchers to conduct this research must be rapidly built globally. Simultaneously, concerns have arisen over the last few years about the quality of research that is being con- ducted and the lack of research that supports teaching al students computing. Research Question. Our research question for our study was: In what ways can existing research standards and practices inform methodologically sound, equity-enabling computing education research? Methodology. We conducted a concept analysis using existing re- search and various standards (e.g. European Educational Research Association, Australian Education Research Organisation, Ameri- can Psychological Association). We then synthesised key features ni the context of equity-focused K-12 computing education research. Findings. We present aset of guidelines for general research design that takes into account best practices across the standards that are infused with equity-enabling research practices. Implications. Our guidelines wil directly impact future equitable computing education research by providing guidance on conducting high-quality research such that the findings can be aggregated and impact future policy with evidence-based results. Because we have crafted these guidelines to be broadly applicable across a variety of settings, we believe that they will be useful to researchers operating in a variety of contexts.more » « less
-
The push to make computer science (CS) education available to all students has been closely followed by increased efforts to collect and report better data on where CS is offered, who is teaching CS, and which students have access to, enroll in, and ultimately benefit from learning CS. These efforts can be highly influential on the evolution of CS education policy, as education leaders and policymakers often rely heavily on data to make decisions. Because of this, it is critical that CS education researchers understand how to collect, analyze, and report data in ways that reflect reality without masking disparities between subpopulations. Similarly, it is important that CS education leaders and policymakers understand how to judiciously interpret the data and translate information into action to scale CS education in ways designed to eliminate inequities. To that end, this article expands on recent research regarding the use of data to assess and inform progress in scaling and broadening participation in CS education. We describe the CAPE framework for assessing equity with respect to the capacity for, access to, participation in, and experience of CS education and explicate how it can be applied to analyze and interpret data to inform policy decisions at multiple levels of educational systems. We provide examples using large, statewide datasets containing educational and demographic information for K-12 students and schools, thereby giving leaders and policymakers a roadmap to assess and address issues of equity in their own schools, districts, or states. We compare and contrast different approaches to measuring and reporting inequities and discuss how data can influence the future of CS education through its impact on policy.more » « less