Learning together: Collaboration and community in PK–12 computing education

Abstract

In PK–12 computing education, researchers and practitioners have often focused on supporting individual learning gains, instead of considering opportunities for structures that may foster collective flourishing. In this three-article dissertation, I employ both quantitative and qualitative methods to explore the concept of learning together, considering the design and implementation of a new creative computing design studio model for 4th–6th grade classrooms learning Scratch. This model creates opportunities for students and teachers to explore, create, share, and reflect on their self-directed and open-ended programming projects together. By participating in the design studio, students and teachers can collaboratively develop both their creative and conceptual fluency with computer programming, which can support broader aspirations of inclusive and equitable computational participation.