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Herro, Danielle; Quigley, Cassie
2016 On the Horizon
PurposeThe novelty of science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics (STEAM) instruction in K-12 classrooms means few cases of STEAM teaching are documented in depth. This paper aims to broaden the conversation regarding STEAM by investigating this new form of education.Design/methodology/approachAs part of a larger multi-year study researching STEAM teaching practices in 14 middle school classrooms in the southeastern United States, the article first summarizes prior research findings and then presents ideas for higher education and K-12 researchers to consider when incorporating STEAM teaching in pre-service education, professional development, and in classrooms. Then, the authors use a second-order narrative approach to describe three cases of teachers enacting STEAM practices in classrooms. FindingsDrawing on the notion of ‘remixing’ education in the context of STEAM, the authors show how each teacher alters existing practices, instead of offering entirely new instruction, as they implement STEAM teaching. Originality/valueWith few cases of STEAM teaching detailed in the depth, this paper advances the understanding of STEAM teaching practices in K-12 classrooms.
2016 On the Horizon
PurposeThis article aims to better understand game-based learning teaching practices through an interview with Zack Gilbert, a 6th grade teacher who is incorporating video games Civilization IV (Civ) and Minecraft into his social studies classroom. Design/methodology/approachThis article is based on an interview with Zack Gilbert, regarding his practices and ideas towards using video games to facilitate learning. FindingsIn this interview, he shared his journey exploring teaching practices and experiences applying Civ and Minecraft to social studies class, which may serve as an example for other teachers. Originality/valueThe pioneering and successful experiences of Zack Gilbert may offer an exmaple or insights for other teachers who intend to incorporate video games into their classrooms.
2016 On the Horizon
PurposeThe purpose of this exploratory article is to review and discuss the varied ways computer programming is introduced to schools and families as a new form of learning. The paper examines the rhetoric around coding within academic journals and popular media articles over the past three decades. This article argues that despite the best intentions of media researchers and enthusiasts, if the rhetoric around computer science in all K-12 schools is to become a reality, there first needs to be a greater focus on monitoring such rhetoric and better understanding exactly how programming is presented to the wider public. Design/methodology/approachThis paper represents an analysis of 67 peer-reviewed books and journal articles as well as news articles and editorials related to students’ learning (or needing to learn) computer programming on the K-12 level. In terms of criteria for inclusion, in addition to publication date and article readership, there were three considerations: (a) the article needed to focus on computer science on the K-12 grade levels; (2) the article needed to focus on introductory computer programming initiatives, rather than more advanced courses/ topics); (3) the article needed to specifically focus on school-based learning environments. FindingsFindings point to three distinct ways in which introductory coding initiatives have been portrayed (and been perceived): new literacy, “grounded” math, and technical skill. Ultimately, the paper does not propose a single defining metaphor. Rather it argues that the metaphors one selects matter considerably in determining programming’s future in entering (or not entering) schools, and that educators need to make a conscientious effort to consider multiple metaphors without choosing just one.Research limitations/implicationsIn terms of research limitations, the article does not purport to be an exhaustive analysis of all the metaphors that have been used to introduce computer science to K-12 schools over the past thirty years. Rather it only identifies the leading metaphors from the literature, and in doing so, makes an important first step in examining the role of metaphor in the presentation of computer science as a "new" course of study. Practical implicationsThe article is intended for educators, researchers, and administrators to gain a better understanding of what computer science is (and could be) for K-12 schooling.Originality/valueThere is currently considerable discussion about teaching computer science in all U.S. high schools, middle schools, and even elementary schools. There is however little examination of past attempts to bring CS into K-12 schools and what these attempts may inform current advocacy.
2016 On the Horizon
PurposeA discussion with Dr. Barry Fishman, University of Michigan, concerning how to use technology to improve the learning experience of students in higher education.Design/methodology/approachThis article summarizes an interview with Dr. Fishman conducted in December, 2015.FindingsMassive open online courses (MOOCs), personalized learning, and changes in how we assess student learning are all opportunities that Fishman believes can improve both student outcomes and intrinsic motivation.Originality/valueChanges in technology can enable researchers and educators easier access to implementing various learning environments.
2016 On the Horizon
PurposeThis paper demonstrates the impact of recognition and valuation of youth interest, on potential career trajectory and future pathway outcomes from that recognition.Design/methodology/approachThis paper presents data from two ethnographies. The first ethnography is of an online professional wrestling fan community, which took place between October 2012 and May 2013. The second ethnography is of the online Scratch community, Scratch is an free online coding program. Observations of the community took place between October 2014 and October 2015, with interviews ongoing as of the writing of this paper. FindingsThis paper details the importance of valuing youth learning, as well as the impact that receiving recognition and valuation can have on youths’ future choices. Research limitations/implicationsThis research focuses on two online communities, and presents four examples of the phenomena of valuation and recognition described in the paper. To draw broad conclusions a wider sample would be required.Practical implicationsThis paper can offer examples to practitioners and researcher alike, as to what the impacts of valuing youth learning in interest-driven contexts can be for youth long-term learning and career trajectory, and forms that the valuation of interest to support growth and interest can take.Originality/valueThe paper demonstrates the importance of valuing learning in all parts of youths’ lives and the impact that the valuation can have on the future pathways and career trajectory of youth.
Schroeder, Eileen E; Zarinnia, E. Anne
2016 On the Horizon
PurposeThis article will describe the conversations and collaborative problem solving strategies initiated by a small group of faculty working collegially across five UW campuses to address the state shortage of school librarians. Design/methodology/approachThis is a case study of the development of the Consortium, its curriculum design and redesign and course development based on Conversation Theory, a set of common principles, and new directions in the library field.FindingsThis Consortium developed a virtual department structure and a curriculum that has addressed the needs of the state and overcome bureaucratic hurdles.Originality/valueThe structure of the Consortium, the use of conversation theory to guide its development, curriculum and course design, and solutions to problems that arose could benefit other collaborative efforts.
2016 On the Horizon
PurposeGames and learning research has diverged into "games for learning" and "games as learning" research. This paper attempts to provide a third framing, "games with learning," that can help to address the lived experiences learners have with these media outside of formal, instructional contexts.Design/methodology/approachThis paper is a critical analysis of the current games and learning field, considering what has been missed by recent research in the field, and how we might benefit from further consideration of what Bernard Suits calls the "lusory attitude," or voluntary choice to accept inefficiencies in achieving goals. The paper analyzes dominant rhetorics of educational game research, with the intent of revealing the implicit assumptions about play and choice that much recent “games for learning” and “games as learning” work may have ignored.FindingsThe paper reveals that the further consideration of learning through extant play with games (characterized here as "games with learning"), can be a means of shifting the direction of educational games research toward investigations of how games are played “in the wilds” of out-of-school contexts. The paper advocates for a shifting of focus from compulsory contexts to the study of voluntary game play.Originality/valueThe key argument is that games and learning to date has focused inordinately on how games can further educational design, rather than how the use of games can reveal important new contexts for learning.
Holden, Jeremiah Isaac; Poggione, Pagan; Kupperman, Jeff
2016 On the Horizon
PurposeThis article illustrates through word, image and design the back-and-forth exchange characteristic of Project Oriented Semantic Trading (POST) Cards, a game-based professional learning ritual relevant to educators’ problems of practice. In describing the iterative designs and features of POST Cards, this article intentionally depicts alternative means of narrative and scholarship via imaginative, playful and visual (re)presentation.Design/methodology/approachBoth POST Cards and this inquiry use a design-based process driven by theory about play, intended to improve education practice, and iteratively co-created with participants. As an annotated and dialogical worked example, this representation of game play moves beyond the monolithic medium of printed text. With the intention to provoke discussion about the content and configuration of inquiry, this article traces the literal and figurative tradeoffs associated with the development and play of POST Cards.FindingsIn surveying the design and enactment of POST Cards across two iterations, and a related Quote Cards mutation, three design principles are relevant to fostering greater playfulness in higher education: embrace the inevitability of tradeoffs, invite players to co-create new features and iterations, and create conditions whereby everyday rituals and social practices are transformed into improvisational and discursive play.Originality/valueAs an annotated narrative constructed in the form and spirit of POST Cards, this inquiry is notable for presenting an experimental form of multimodal literacy and also for revealing how higher education settings and practices may be designed as playgrounds upon which to render visionary, risky and expressive approaches to game-based collaboration and creative scholarship.
Williams-Pierce, Caroline; Swartz, Theodore F.
2016 On the Horizon
PurposeThis paper introduces innovative ways to design, develop, and implement original learning experiences, by defining certain design elements with illustrative vignettes from the classrooms of teacher pioneers. Design/methodology/approachA new rubric of design elements is presented that synthesizes and illustrates theoretical and empirical research. FindingsTeacher pioneers implement instructional design elements in a manner that supports the subordination of learning to teaching in their classrooms.Practical implicationsThe rubric organizes criteria to design, implement, analyze, and evaluate the extent to which instructional resources and approaches, at all levels and in all content areas, are likely to foster learners’ independence, autonomy and responsibility. Originality/valueThis paper provides a useful, concise, and clearly explained rubric of design elements that, when most effectively implemented, can prepare students to meet, with enthusiasm and confidence, whatever comes their way.
Santo, Rafi; Ching, Dixie; Peppler, Kylie; Hoadley, Christopher
2016 On the Horizon
PurposeThis article makes the case that the education community can learn from professional learning and innovation practices, collectively called ‘Working in the Open’ (or ‘Working Open’), that have roots in the Free/Open Source Software movement. These practices focus on values of transparency, collaboration and sharing within communities of experimentation. We argue that Working Open offers a compelling approach to fostering distributed educational professional ecosystems that focus on co-constructing new projects as well as best practices. Design/methodology/approachInsights presented here are based on three sources: (1) expert perspectives on open source work practices gleaned through interviews and blog posts, (2) a qualitative case case analysis of a collaborative project enacted by a group of informal learning organizations within the Hive NYC Learning Network, a community of over 70 youth-facing organizations in New York City, as well as an overview of that community’s participation structures and finally (3) knowledge-building activities and discussions held within the Hive NYC community about the topic. Analysis focused on operationalizing emic understandings of ‘Working in the Open’ and manifestations of these practices and supportive structures in situ and derived from this general principles to guide open work approaches. FindingsWe identify five practices deemed as central to Working Open: (1) Public Storytelling and Context Setting, (2) Enabling Community Contribution, (3) Rapid Prototyping ‘in the Wild’, (4) Public Reflection and Documentation and, lastly, (5) Creating Remixable Work Products. We describe these practices, show how they are enacted in situ, outline ways that Hive NYC stewards promote a Working Open organizational ecosystem and conclude with recommendations for utilizing a Working Open approach. Originality/valueDrawing from the Free/Open Source Software movement, this article builds on standard practices of professional learning communities to provide an approach that focuses on pushing forward innovation and changes in practice as opposed to solely sharing reflections or observing practices.
Ching, Dixie; Santo, Rafi; Hoadley, Christopher; Peppler, Kylie
2016 On the Horizon
PurposeThis article makes a case for the importance of brokering future learning opportunities to youth as a programmatic goal for informal learning organizations. Such brokering entails engaging in practices that connect youth to events, programs, internships, individuals, and institutions related to their interests to support them beyond the window of a specific program or event. Brokering is especially critical for youth who are new to an area of interest: it helps them develop both a baseline understanding of the information landscape and a social network that will respond to their needs as they pursue various goals. We describe three critical levers for brokering well in informal settings: (1) creating learning environments that allow trust to form between youth and educators and enable educators to develop an understanding of a young person’s interests, needs, and goals, (2) attending to a young person’s tendency (or not) to reach out to educators after a program is over to solicit assistance, and (3) enabling potential brokers to efficiently locate appropriate future learning opportunities for each youth that approaches them. We also include a set of program practices for providers who wish to increase their brokering impact, as well as recommendations geared primarily toward organization leaders. We hope this paper brings clarity and enhanced significance to the practice of brokering as a strategy to support youth pathways towards meaningful futures. Design/methodology/approachInsights presented here are the result of a participatory knowledge building and sharing process with a community of after-school providers known as the Mozilla Hive NYC Learning Network. The topic of discussion was how these providers might continue to support young people in their intensive project-based programs after the program was over. The authors of this article, acting as embedded research partners to Hive NYC, contributed insights to these discussions based on ethnographic fieldwork and case studies of high-school-age youth in the Hive NYC context.FindingsWe articulate a set of brokering practices as well as a conceptual model that communicates how brokering might lead to valued long-term outcomes for youth, including increased social capital. Originality/valueOur intent is that information and perspectives from this article will inform youth-serving practice and serve as a catalyst for further conversations and activities geared toward promoting youth pathways of learning and identity development.