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1. Wind River Elementary Computer Science Collaborative: Connecting Computer Science and Indigenous Identities and Knowledges on the Wind River Reservation

   https://doi.org/10.26716/jcsi.2023.9.21.42  

   Wilson, Joseph P.; Rich, Kathryn; O'Leary, Jared; Miller, Veronica (September 2023, Journal of Computer Science Integration)

   Three Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone–serving districts formed a researcher–practitioner partnership with the Wyoming Department of Education, the American Institutes for Research®, and BootUp Professional Development to advance the computer science (CS) education of their elementary students in ways that strengthen their Indigenous identities and knowledges. In this paper, we share experiences from 2019 to 2022 with our curriculum development, professional development (PD), and classroom implementation. The researcher–practitioner partnership developed student and teacher materials to support elementary CS lessons aligned to Wyoming’s CS standards and “Indian Education for All” social studies standards. Indigenous community members served as experts to codesign culturally relevant resources. Teachers explored the curriculum resources during three 4-hour virtual and in-person PD sessions. The sessions were designed to position the teachers as designers of CS projects they eventually implemented in their classrooms. Projects completed by students included simulated interviews with Indigenous heroes and animations of students introducing themselves in their Native languages. Teachers described several positive effects of the Scratch lessons on students, including high engagement, increased confidence, and successful application of several CS concepts. The teachers also provided enthusiastic positive reviews of the ways the CS lessons allowed students to explore their Indigenous identities while preparing to productively use technology in their futures. The Wind River Elementary CS Collaborative is one model for how a researcher–practitioner partnership can utilize diverse forms of expertise, ways of knowing, and Indigenous language to engage in curriculum design, PD, and classroom implementation that supports culturally sustaining CS pedagogies in Indigenous communities. 

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2. K12 Computer Science Teachers' Attitudes Toward a Foundational Assumption of Ethnocomputing

   https://doi.org/10.1145/3641554.3701891  

   Lachney, Michael; Jee, Hyein; Lapentina, Andrew; Hill, Richard; Allen_Kuyenga, Madison C; Yadav, Aman (February 2025, ACM)

   Ethnocomputing describes the study of computational ideas and thinking as they appear in the artifacts, epistemologies, designs, and practices of temporally and spatially situated communities (e.g., from computational scientists to textile artisans). It is also about how such communities embed their beliefs and values within computational artifacts. One outcome of ethnocomputing research is the demonstration of how Indigenous and diasporic communities have dynamic computational histories and innovations that are relevant to computer science and computer science education today. From lessons on e-textiles and Native American botanical knowledge to visual programming environments that reveal the algorithms of cornrow braiding in the Black diaspora, this has allowed for anti-racist challenges to white supremacist myths of primitivism in primary and secondary computer science education. While there are studies about how ethnocomputing tools and lessons shape children’s attitudes toward and knowledge of computing, there is no research on what computer science teachers think about one of ethnocomputing’s foundational assumptions: computational ideas and thinking are embedded within Indigenous and vernacular artifacts, epistemologies, designs, and practices. This paper reports findings from interviews with 14 K12 computer science teachers who had been exposed to ethnocomputing educational technologies and activities. From our qualitative analyses, we found that most (n=12) teachers believed that Indigenous and/or vernacular artisans think computationally. We detail their lines of reasoning before turning toward teachers who had ambivalent (n=1) or negative (n=1) positions about this assumption of ethnocomputing research. We discuss the implications of these findings for anti-racist K12 computer science teacher professional development. 

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3. "Pre-engineering Collaboration as a Tool to Facilitate Decolonization of Native American Students".

   Pieri, Robert V.; Allard, Austin J.; Allery, TA.; Vallie, A; Bowen, B.; Haefner, K.; Nelson, L.; Luecke, D.; Parker, M. M. (June 2020, 2020 ASEE Virtual Annual Conference Content Access)

   Abstract Pre-engineering Collaboration as a Tool to Facilitate Decolonization of Native American Students The intent of this paper is to describe how a collaborative engineering education program operating on a number of tribally controlled colleges and universities, TCU’s, across a particular geographic region of the United States may, through thoughtful application of best educational practices including a community-based approach, be seen as a tool that moves decolonization within Native American communities and education systems forward. Put in terms of a research question: “How effective can the funded program be when considered as a method to move decolonization forward in Native American engineering education and could it increase enrollment?” This collaborative education effort which is been going on for the past 10 years and is soon to graduate its 10th student with a Baccalaureate of Science in either Civil, Mechanical, Electrical or Agricultural Engineering, is using this milestone as an opportunity to do some introspection on the program, its achievements, the processes that were used and some long-term outcomes. In recent history great consideration has been given by indigenous peoples to the recognition of colonial influences on their current lives. Much discussion has taken place among Native Americans regarding efforts to mitigate or reverse these influences on their reservations and lives. This paper will offer a working definition of decolonization as it might be applied to educational activities and specifically engineering education involving Native Americans. The paper will present information about the effectiveness and costs of considering and supporting the “total student” and how it may be augmented to accomplish decolonization. The steps and procedures utilized to affect this transformation will be presented and discussed, along with basic numerics to indicate effectiveness. Relevancy of this activity to other situations in other underrepresented or under-resourced communities will be discussed. 

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4. Studying In-service Teacher Professional Development on Purposeful Integration of Engineering into K-12 STEM Teaching (Research to Practice)

   Gunning, A. M. (July 2021, American Society for Engineering Education 2021 Annual Conference)

   Integrated STEM approaches in K-12 science and math instruction can be more engaging and meaningful for students and often meet the curriculum content and practice goals better than single-subject lessons. Engineering, as a key component of STEM education, offers hands-on, designed-based, problem solving activities to drive student interest and confidence in STEM overall. However, K-12 STEM teachers may not feel equipped to implement engineering practices and may even experience anxiety about trying them out in their classrooms without the added support of professional development and professional learning communities. To address these concerns and support engineering integration, this research study examined the experiences of 18 teachers in one professional development program dedicated to STEM integration and engineering pedagogy for K-12 classrooms. This professional development program positioned the importance of the inclusion of engineering content and encouraged teachers to explore community-based, collaborative activities that identified and spoke to societal needs and social impacts through engineering integration. Data collected from two of the courses in this project, Enhancing Mathematics with STEM and Engineering in the K-12 Classroom, included participant reflections, focus groups, microteaching lesson plans, and field notes. Through a case study approach and grounded theory analysis, themes of self-efficacy, active learning supports, and social justice teaching emerged. The following discussion on teachers’ engineering and STEM self-efficacy, teachers’ integration of engineering to address societal needs and social impacts, and teachers’ development in engineering education through hands-on activities, provides better understanding of engineering education professional development for K-12 STEM teachers. 

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5. Using Engineering Design Tasks to Create Indigenous Cultural and Community Connections with the Classroom for Elementary and Middle School Students

   Bowman, F.; Klemetsrud, B.; Ozturk, E.; Robinson, J. (August 2022, 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition)

   Oftentimes engineering design tasks are thought of as acultural and devoid of community inclusion and values. However, engineering design is inherently a cultural endeavor. Problems needing engineering solutions or design thinking are situated in a specific community and need community solutions. This work in progress paper describes initial efforts from a project to help elementary and middle school teachers create culturally relevant engineering design tasks for implementation in their classrooms. To integrate best practices for culturally relevant pedagogy, the engineering design framework developed by UTeach Engineering was adapted to specifically address community needs and cultural values. Changes to the framework also include culturally relevant instructional strategies for classroom implementation. To situate the engineering design steps within a culturally relevant framework questions involving communities and students’ cultural needs, values, and expectations were posed in each stage of the design process. A water filtration engineering design task was situated in the cultural concept of “Mni Wiconi” (Water is life in the Dakota language). This was taught in a summer professional development workshop for a cohort of elementary and middle school teachers, in rural North Dakota, with school districts comprised of large Native American student populations. Teachers adapted this design task for their individual classrooms and content areas (science, math, social studies, ELA) and implemented it in their classrooms in the fall of 2021. Additional support for teachers was provided with fall workshop days aimed at helping them with the facilitation of a culturally relevant engineering task. To integrate culturally relevant teaching and good engineering design tasks, the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction’s Native American Essential Understandings Teachings of our Elder’s website was used. This allowed teachers and students to have firsthand knowledge of how various science and engineering concepts are framed within the indigenous community. Professional development focused on how to situate culturally responsive teaching in engineering design. For example, in one of the school districts the water filtration task was related to increased pollution of a nearby lake which holds significant importance for the local Tribal Nation. In addition to being able to visibly witness the demand for cleaner water, the book “We are Water Protectors” written by Carole Lindstrom, was used to provide cultural grounding for the Identify and Describe stages of the engineering design framework. Case studies of how teachers incorporated the water filtration design task into their lesson plans are presented along with their suggestions on how to improve classroom implementation. Future work in the program includes teachers and their students developing engineering design tasks situated in their own communities and cultures. 

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