A Culturally Relevant Approach to Spatial Computational Thinking Skills and Career Awareness through an Immersive Virtual Environment

该项目将设计和研究一个项目，以培养拉丁裔高年级学生的空间计算思维技能和对计算密集型职业的认识。该项目将在《我的世界：教育版》（MEE）中设计沉浸式的、与文化相关的、积极的学习体验。全世界有数百万人在使用《我的世界》，它使参与者能够探索三维世界，发现和使用原材料，设计新环境，创建工具和结构，以及简单的机器。这个视频游戏平台强调家庭参与、近同伴指导、同伴协作和专家建模。该项目将开发一套独特的扩展和适合年龄的空间规划功能，并吸引参与者发展空间计算思维技能（SCT）。这些技能将支持学习抽象关键空间特征，用几何表示分解形状和识别模式，以及使用编程和计算工具进行空间算法设计的能力。该项目将向参与者介绍计算密集型STEM职业，这些技能在机器人、虚拟现实和智能地理空间系统等领域的需求日益增加。该项目将开发一套独特的双语、扩展和适合年龄的视觉编程功能，使成千上万的小学高年级学生能够参与高质量的空间编程学习体验。参与者可以在学校或家里玩这个游戏。由于低成本的材料和自定进度的学习设计，学习活动是灵活和负担得起的家庭和教育工作者有不同的需求。通过基于设计的研究，该项目将解决两个研究问题：1)如何设计沉浸式虚拟学习环境，以支持拉丁裔上小学学生的空间计算思维技能发展、职业探索和家庭参与？2)该计划对参与的小学生、家长/监护人和大学生的直接和持续影响是什么？该项目将从可用性和可行性研究开始，这些研究将为学习经验和环境的迭代设计提供信息，随后进行实验和对照研究。该项目将采用混合方法收集数据，包括参与者反思、大声思考、职业兴趣发展调查、观察、访谈、数据分析以及计算、空间技能和自我效能的评估。通过该项目揭示的研究结果可以为培养拉丁裔学生对计算机的兴趣和意识的课程设计提供丰富的见解，以及在沉浸式虚拟学习环境中支持家庭参与、同伴协作和近同伴导师促进的有效策略。项目的学习环境、教师专业发展课程和课程计划将在《我的世界》图书馆共享，并扩大到全国范围，纳入课后课程，并作为计算机科学教育综合STEAM课程的一部分在小学课堂上使用。项目研究成果将通过会议演讲和专业期刊与研究人员、开发人员和STEM教育工作者分享。家庭参与将通过双语资源和项目网站提供的其他支持得到支持。该项目由“面向学生和教师的创新技术体验”（ITEST）项目资助，该项目支持有助于提高学生对科学、技术、工程和数学（STEM）以及信息和通信技术（ICT）职业的知识和兴趣的实践、项目要素、背景和流程的理解。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 project will design and research a project for developing upper-elementary Latinx students' spatial computational thinking skills and awareness of computationally-intensive careers. The project will design immersive, culturally relevant, and active learning experiences in Minecraft: Education Edition (MEE). Minecraft, which is used by millions worldwide, enables participants to explore a three-dimensional world, discover and use raw materials, engineer new environments, create tools and structures, and simple machines. This videogame platform emphasizes family engagement, near-peer mentorship, peer collaboration, and expert modeling. The project will develop a unique set of extended and age-appropriate spatial programming functions and engage participants in developing Spatial Computational Thinking Skills (SCT). These skills will support the ability to learn to abstract key spatial features, to decompose shapes with geometric representation and recognize patterns, and to use programming and computing tools for spatial algorithm design. The project will introduce participants to computationally-intensive STEM careers where these skills are increasingly demanded in areas such as robotics, virtual reality, and smart geospatial systems. The project will develop a unique set of bilingual, extended and age-appropriate visual programming functions to enable thousands of upper elementary school students to engage in high-quality spatial programming learning experiences. Participants will be able to access the game in school or at home. Due to low-cost materials and the self-paced learning design, the learning activities are flexible and affordable for families and educators who have different needs.Through design-based research, the project will address two research questions: 1) How can an immersive virtual learning environment be designed to support upper-elementary school Latinx students' spatial computational thinking skill development, career exploration, and family engagement? 2) What are the immediate and sustained impacts of the program on participating elementary school students, parents/guardians, and college students? The project will begin with usability and feasibility studies that will inform the iterative design of the learning experience and environment, followed up by experimental, controlled studies. The project will collect data using mixed-methods including participant reflections, think-alouds, surveys of career interest development, observations, interviews, data analytics, and assessments of computational, spatial skills and self-efficacy. The research findings revealed through this project can provide rich insights into program designs that foster Latinx students’ interest and awareness in computing and effective strategies to support family engagement, peer collaboration, and near-peer mentor facilitation in an immersive virtual learning environment. The project learning environment, teacher professional development sessions, and lesson plans will be shared in the Minecraft World Library to be scaled to a national level, incorporated in afterschool programs, and used in elementary school classrooms as part of computer science education integrated STEAM curriculum. Project research findings will be shared with researchers, developers, and STEM educators through conference presentations and professional journals. Family participation will be supported through bilingual resources and other supports available through the project website. The project is funded by the Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program, which supports projects that build understandings of practices, program elements, contexts, and processes contributing to increasing students' knowledge and interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and information and communication technology (ICT) careers.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.