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Week 4: Introduction to CSDTs

 

 

This week started like every other week. I'm arrived at the lab on Monday morning, doing more research on how to manipulate the 3D figures when Eve comes in announcing that we (Hanan, Eve, and I ) are going to NC State at Raleigh, NC to teach kids how to use Culturally Situated Design Tools (CSDTs). We were introduced to the concept of CSDTs at the beginning of the summer, but Hanan and I have never worked on the tools and were a little nervous about teaching this tool to other kids. After Eve showed us how to operate the tools that we will be working on (the bead loom tool and the cornrow tool), we were more confident about teaching this to little kids.

The next day, after getting lost on the road for about an hour, we arrived at NC State ready to teach students about CSDTs. The setting for the CSDT workshop was similar to a classroom. Hanan, Eve, and I decided to dress in normal, everyday clothes. Eve said that dressing like a college student at the workshops instead of business attire creates a stronger connection with the students.

The workshop was a big hit! The first group included 6-8 graders working on the cornrow tool. I have never seen a group that was so excited about learning transformational geometry! After Eve taught them the basics that were needed to operate the cornrow software, students were eager to create their own design using the software.

The 3-5 graders were even more enthusiastic than the first group. They were excited about making their own colorful bead designs and learning about symmetry on a coordinate system.

For this week’s presentation, Hanan and I gave a brief summary of the workshop, and I gave a brief summary of my progress with the shapes applet.  For my literature review, I read the research paper titled “Increasing Diversity in K-12 Computer Science: Strategies from the Field”.  The paper discusses different methods that the author (who is also a computer science teacher in high school, a social science researcher, and director of several outreach groups) used to recruit diverse group of students into the field of computer science.  This group includes students from minority populations, female students, and students who aren’t stereotypically considered the “average computer science student” (cheerleaders, athletes, etc.).

To view this week’s presentation, click here.