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Students in Appalachia have a heritage of problem-solving. We explore how computational thinking (CT) relates to and complements this heritage by analyzing 34 local ingenuity stories, and perspectives from 35 community members about the relevance of CT. We found the two problem-solving approaches are meaningfully different, but can be used in concert. Since equating them could contribute to confusion and cultural erasure, researchers and educators bringing CT as a problem solving strategy into rural and other resourceful cultures must clarify what they mean by “CT helps problem solving.” In these cultures, CT skills are better introduced as new tools to expand students’ problem-solving toolkits, rather than tools that are identical to or better than those traditionally used in their culture.
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Appalachian Ingenuity and the Need for Rurally Sustaining Computational Thinking Pathways
Our research-practice partnership with two school districts in Eastern Kentucky has created a rurally sustaining computational thinking (CT) pathway. In this paper we share our project’s operational understanding of the concept of rural sustainability in the context of CT pathways. We posit that an effective CT pathway for rural communities must be firmly rooted in their cultural wealth, funds of knowledge, and socioeconomic priorities. Moreover, it should empower students to draw upon their own innovation heritage, leveraging CT as a tool to identify and address community challenges. Emphasizing the necessity of incorporating rural contexts into discussions on equitable access to computing education, our conceptualization provides insights into how policy and research can contribute to this important goal.
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- PAR ID:
- 10544103
- Publisher / Repository:
- ACM
- Date Published:
- ISBN:
- 9798400706264
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 133 to 138
- Subject(s) / Keyword(s):
- Computational thinking computer science rural education culturally sustaining computing
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Location:
- Atlanta GA USA
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
-
Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Conference Paper:
- https://doi.org/10.1145/3653666.3656073
