CAREER: CritComp Pop-Ups: A Research-Practice Partnership for Co-Designing and Implementing Critical Computing Elementary Education Curricula

Elementary school-aged children use and have interest in technologies with integrated AI applications, yet they rarely critically investigate the sociopolitical contexts in which people consume and produce AI technology. Without engaging in this form of critical computing, elementary school students will not be prepared to participate ethically in a digitally reliant society and tackle the increasingly discriminatory affects of algorithmic decision-making as they continue their schooling and careers. Moreover, there is still a limited understanding on how elementary students apply critical lenses to computing and few computing education programs are available that focus on sociocultural issues. This CAREER project proposal will address these research gaps by co-designing, implementing, and analyzing an innovative critical computing education curriculum, referred to as CritComp Pop-Ups. The research goals will be to (1) characterize co-design processes that involve teachers, researchers, and students; (2) measure elementary school students’ critical computing knowledge and practices using quantitative ethnography; and (3) evaluate the effectiveness of an AI critical computing curriculum on students’ interest and confidence in computer science. The education goals will be to 1) broaden participation in computing by engaging underserved students in rural areas; (2) foster children’s interest in computer science through culturally relevant instructional methods focused on AI; (3) provide elementary school teachers with strategies for integrating critical computing; (4) host critical computing community events; and (5) train undergraduate/graduate students in research competencies and critical computing. The potential contributions will be to (1) extend understanding of how elementary students construct knowledge through a critical sociopolitical lens; (2) provide researchers a framing for studies on critical computing education; and (3) inform the development of critical computer science educational standards and curriculum. This CAREER project is funded through the Racial Equity in STEM Education program (EDU Racial Equity). The program supports research and practice projects that investigate how considerations of racial equity factor into the improvement of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education and workforce. Awarded projects seek to center the voices, knowledge, and experiences of the individuals, communities, and institutions most impacted by systemic inequities within the STEM enterprise. This program aligns with NSF’s core value of supporting outstanding researchers and innovative thinkers from across the Nation's diversity of demographic groups, regions, and types of organizations. Programs across EDU contribute funds to the Racial Equity program in recognition of the alignment of its projects with the collective research and development thrusts of the four divisions of the directorate. 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.