SCC-CIVIC-PG Track B: Digital Backpack: Enabling Offline Web-based Content Access to Promote Student Academic Resiliency in Acute and Chronic Disaster Situations

当学校将远程学习作为社区灾害应对计划的一部分时，家庭互联网可用性的缺乏是一个极大的问题。一些最严重的“家庭作业差距”是生活在部落社区的学生所经历的，那里的家庭往往缺乏可靠的宽带连接，学生的辍学率是全国最高的。正是在这种背景下，这个项目提出了数字背包（DigiPack），这是一个机会主义的内容交付网络和移动应用程序，可以主动上传、下载和存储数字学习材料到设备上，只要他们获得互联网连接。DigiPack将使学生的移动设备能够自动获取和存储数字教育内容，他们可以离线在家学习。当遇到互联网连接时，在家中离线工作时生成并标记为上传的内容将自动传输。这使得学生能够充分利用到热点地区的旅行，并允许与在线学习进行更随意的互动；学生不必记住所有需要下载、上传和互动的内容列表，只要他们在热点，学生就可以专注于参与互动学习活动（例如，与老师视频通话），当网络连接可用时，DigiPack会自动处理可以异步参与的内容。我们将与STAR学校合作，这是一所位于亚利桑那州Leupp纳瓦霍民族的西南角的公立幼儿园-8特许学校，在纳瓦霍民族规划和试点DigiPack系统。该项目的研究和公民参与活动的愿景侧重于了解亚利桑那州Leupp纳瓦霍学生和教育工作者的特定教育内容需求。该研究将(i)确定DigiPack必须在Leupp社区支持的特定教育信息需求；（ii）辨别DigiPack CDN节点和接入点应该放置在Leupp的哪个位置，以使学生及其家庭获得最佳利益；（iii）共同设计DigiPack移动应用程序用户界面和后端服务支持，以确保部署的有效性和可用性。为此，项目团队将与社区咨询委员会（CAB）合作，该委员会由Leupp家庭、教育工作者和ISP运营商组成，指导DigiPack接口和服务的设计选择，以最好地满足社区的学习需求。该项目的方法将整合参与性行动研究的最佳实践，包括基于资产的社区发展和精益用户体验设计，与社区成员共同研究。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The lack of home Internet availability is extremely problematic when schools shift to remote learning as part of community disaster response plans. Some of the most severe “homework gaps” are experienced by students living in tribal communities, where households often lack reliable broadband connectivity and students experience the highest dropout rates in the nation. It is in this context that this project proposes Digital Backpack (DigiPack), an opportunistic content delivery network and mobile app that proactively uploads, downloads, and stores digital learning material to devices whenever they obtain an Internet connection. DigiPack will enable students’ mobile devices to automatically fetch and store digital education content that they can work on offline at home. Content generated and tagged for upload while working offline at home is automatically transferred when Internet connectivity is encountered. This allows students to make the most of trips to hotspots and allows for more casual interaction with online learning; rather than having to remember a list of all the content that needs to be downloaded, uploaded, and interacted with whenever they are at a hot spot, students can focus on engaging in interactive learning activities (e.g., video calls with a teacher) when connectivity is available and DigiPack automatically handles content that can be engaged with asynchronously. We will partner with STAR School, a public preK-8 charter school located in the southwestern corner of Navajo Nation in Leupp, AZ, to plan and pilot the DigiPack system in Navajo Nation. This project's vision for research and civic engagement activities focuses on understanding the specific educational content needs of Navajo students and educators in Leupp, AZ. This research will (i) identify the specific educational information needs that DigiPack must support in the Leupp community; (ii) discern where DigiPack CDN nodes and access points should be placed in Leupp for optimal benefit to students and their families; and (iii) co-design the DigiPack mobile app user interface and back end service support to ensure that a deployment is effective and usable. To this end, the project team will work with a community advisory board (CAB) comprised of Leupp families, educators and ISP operators to guide the design choices for DigiPack interfaces and services such that they best serve the learning needs of the community. This project's approach will integrate best practices from participatory action research, including asset-based community development and Lean UX design to work with community members as co-researchers.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.