Mentorship and Project-Based Learning to Support Computational Thinking and Computer Science Education Pathways for Underrepresented Students in Los Angeles

University Of California-Los Angeles, Los Angeles CA

Investigators

Abstract

Educating Black and Latinx middle and high school students in the field of computer science with specialized skills is of high social and economic interest to the United States. Computational thinking skills, such as persistence in working with difficult problems and collaborating with others to achieve a common goal, are foundational in preparing students for careers in computing and technology. This partnership between UCLA and a neighboring middle and high school in South Los Angeles will explore how developing computational thinking skills may also enhance students’ understanding of math concepts. To do this, the team will focus on supporting students of color through two critical aspects of education pathways through computer science: the delivery of knowledge by teachers and social influence near-peer mentors. This project builds upon a current partnership between the Critical Design and Gaming Schools (C:\DAGS) in South Los Angeles and the Center for the Transformation of Schools (CTS) at UCLA that centers on effective interventions for 9th grade underrepresented students and expands the work to 300 students in 6th-12th grade. The project seeks to advance understanding of effective models for CT student development in schools that serve predominantly low-income students of color, as well as the types of educational pathways and partnerships that can remove barriers to learning and how CT development can be used as a means for promoting student learning in mathematics. The proposal investigates two critical factors in the CS preparation pathway: the delivery of knowledge by teachers and social influence near-peer mentors. The model will emphasize common instructional strategies to promote CT development and mentorship from UCLA’s Center for Excellence in Engineering and Diversity (CEED) an organization that will provide a pipeline of undergraduate mentors to work with teachers and student mentees at both schools. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.