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Recent STEAM programs have made accomplishments in recruiting K-12 girl students to participate in STEAM activities. Educational researchers have called for studies of how STEM programs engage girls. However, little research has embedded STEM education with girl education such as their emotional needs, identity, and self-expression. This study examined how crochet that was embedded in a STEM summer camp impacted their sense of belonging, creativity, well-being, and STEAM learning. For this qualitative study, surveys were conducted with 37 student participants and Discord was used as part of the data sources. Findings indicated that crocheting enhanced students’ sense of belonging, creativity, well-being, as well as STEM learning. This study contributes to the STEM learning program design for girls in secondary schools with two closely related theories: constructivist learning environment theory and sense of belonging theory. This study added new knowledge to the research of crochet in girl education and STEM program design.
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This content will become publicly available on April 25, 2026
Social Wearables Edu-Larp: Insights From a Novel Camp Combining Crafting, Coding, and Larping Aimed at Non-traditional Steam Participants
Developing STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math) education curricula encouraging participation from underrepresented groups is crucial for diversity in computational fields. Many existing programs attract cis-white males, to the exclusion of other groups. This paper discusses a camp where participants, primarily female youth ages 10-14 (N=45), engage in crafting social wearable technologies within a live-action roleplay context. Our findings from four camp sessions show increased self-reported competence and interest in STEAM among participants, alongside enhanced feelings of community and social support. The camp’s innovative approach integrates design thinking, iterative design, and collaboration, proving effective in fostering inclusivity and engagement in STEAM. We adopted an iterative Research-through-Design process, with researchers embedded in the camp to observe and conduct surveys and interviews with participants. Researchers and educators can benefit from reading our results, which demonstrate the value of a playful, socially-engaged curriculum in attracting and retaining diverse students in STEAM fields.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2005816
- PAR ID:
- 10652966
- Publisher / Repository:
- ACM
- Date Published:
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 1 to 15
- Subject(s) / Keyword(s):
- edu-larp, larp, wearables, crafting, coding, Micro:Bit, informal learning
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Location:
- Yokohama, Japan
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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