Increasing Diversity and Engagement in Undergraduate Computing with Enhanced Collaborative Learning

University Of Virginia Main Campus, Charlottesville VA

Investigators

Abstract

Despite many efforts and investments, women and minorities continue to be underrepresented in computing disciplines and occupations. This pilot study will examine the serious and long-standing problems that face female and under-represented minorities in computing fields. The imbalance is of national concern as it contributes to the deficit of computing professionals in contrast to the number of available jobs. With a focus on increasing student engagement and diversity in undergraduate introductory computing courses, this project will integrate collaborative learning activities and diversity-focused instructional strategies to ultimately improve diversity in computing. Introductory courses are critical as they are the gateway into computing majors, minors, and concentrations. Further, the availability of computing courses to educate a scientifically literate populace in computational thinking and problem solving is steadily increasing, so the impacts of this project are broader than just one introductory computing course. At the University of Virginia alone, this project will be deployed to reach more than 2000 students. By improving student engagement, study results and findings will contribute in three ways: (1) improving the teaching and learning of future computing professionals, (2) promoting the participation and persistence of females and under-represented minorities in computing courses, and (3) establishing a basis for the development and implementation of collaborative learning strategies throughout a computing curriculum. Building on the knowledge gains from two previously funded NSF awards, this project will adapt diversity-focused instructional strategies to enhance students' engagement in undergraduate introductory computing courses. The study begins with an exploration of students' perceptions and needs in computing courses. Recognizing students' needs, the pre-designed diversity-focused instruction and collaborative learning activities will be iteratively tailored to support classroom teaching and learning practice over a duration of multiple semesters. To understand the relationship between diversity-focused collaborative learning activities and student engagement in computing, a mixed methods research design approach will be used to answer specific research questions. Quantitative and qualitative research methods will be used for deepening understanding of the learning environments. Research findings will generate new knowledge about ways to improve instruction for undergraduate computing courses and ultimately will lead to new understanding of how to extend the practices across the computing curriculum. To maximize impact, the diversity-focused enhanced collaborative instructional strategies will be widely disseminated, and the adoption of its methods and content will be promoted using open digital resources and social networks, such as Computer Science for All and the National Center for Women & Information Technology.