Search for: All records

This poster shares the design and development of a data visualization project that brings together social studies, Indian Education For All, and computing to center understanding of the loss of tribal lands by the Blackfeet Nation in Montana. Students utilize Circuit Playground Express microcontrollers to program LEDs representing the percentage of original (pre-contact) tribal lands still owned by the Blackfeet Nation at various points in United States history. 

In July 2021, Computer Science (CS) standards were officially added as a subject area within the K-12 Montana content standards. However, due to a lack of professional development and pre-service preparation in CS, schools and teachers in Montana are underprepared to implement these standards. Montana is also a unique state, since AmericanIndian education is mandated by the state constitution in what is known as the IndianEducation for All Act. We are developing elementary and middle school units and teacher training materials that simultaneously address CS, Indian Education, and other Montana content standards. In this paper, we present a unit for fourth through sixth grades using a participatory design approach. Through physical computing, students create a visual narrative of their own stories inspired by ledger art, an American Indian art medium for recording lived experiences. We discuss the affordances and challenges of an integrated approach to CS teaching and learning in elementary and middle schools in Montana.