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Adapting primary Computing resources for cultural responsiveness: Bringing in learners’ identity

11/09/2024 By Maria Richter

Reading Time: 6 minutesIn recent years, the emphasis on creating culturally responsive educational practices has gained significant traction in schools worldwide. This approach aims to tailor teaching and learning experiences to better reflect and respect the diverse cultural backgrounds of students, thereby enhancing their engagement and success in school. In one of our recent research studies, we collaborated […]

New resource to help teachers make Computing culturally relevant

02/04/2024 By Maria Richter

Reading Time: 6 minutesHere at the Raspberry Pi Foundation, we believe that it’s important that our academic research has a practical application. An important area of research we are engaged in is broadening participation in computing education by investigating how the subject can be made more culturally relevant — we have published several studies in this area.  Licensed […]

Culturally relevant Computing: Experiences of primary learners

06/12/2023 By Maria Richter

Reading Time: 4 minutesToday’s blog is written by Dr Alex Hadwen-Bennett, who we worked with to find out primary school learners’ experiences of engaging with culturally relevant Computing lessons. Alex is a Lecturer in Computing Education at King’s College London, where he undertakes research focusing on inclusive computing education and the pedagogy of making. Despite many efforts to […]

Engaging primary Computing teachers in culturally relevant pedagogy through professional development

05/12/2023 By Maria Richter

Reading Time: 8 minutesUnderrepresentation in computing is a widely known issue, in industry and in education. To cite some statistics from the UK: a Black British Voices report from August 2023 noted that 95% of respondents believe the UK curriculum neglects black lives and experiences; fewer students from working class backgrounds study GCSE Computer Science; when they leave […]

Running a workshop with teachers to create culturally relevant Computing lessons

06/07/2023 By Maria Richter

Reading Time: 6 minutesWho chooses to study Computing? In England, data from GCSE and A level Computer Science entries in 2019 shows that the answer is complex. Black Caribbean students were one of the most underrepresented groups in the subject, while pupils from other ethnic backgrounds, such as White British, Chinese, and Asian Indian, were well-represented. This picture […]

Take part in our research study to develop culturally relevant Computing resources for primary schools

07/09/2022 By Maria Richter

Reading Time: 4 minutesWe are looking for primary schools in England to get involved in our new research study investigating how to adapt Computing resources to make them culturally relevant for pupils. In a project in 2021, we created guidelines that included ideas about how teachers can modify Computing lessons so they are culturally relevant for their learners. […]

Computer science education for what purpose? Some perspectives

24/02/2022 By Maria Richter

Reading Time: 4 minutesAs we’re coming to the end of Black History Month in the USA this year, we’ve been amazed by the variety of work the computing education community is doing to address inequities in their classrooms. For our part, we have learned a huge amount about equitable STEM and computer science (CS) education from the community, […]

Celebrate Black history this month with code!

01/02/2022 By Maria Richter

Reading Time: 3 minutesFor those of us living in the USA, February is Black History Month, our month-long celebration of Black history. This is an occasion to highlight the amazing accomplishments of Black Americans through time. Simply put, the possibilities are endless! Black history touches every area of our lives, and it is so important that we seize […]

The Roots project: Implementing culturally responsive computing teaching in schools in England

27/01/2022 By Maria Richter

Reading Time: 5 minutesSince last year, we have been investigating culturally relevant pedagogy and culturally responsive teaching in computing education. This is an important part of our research to understand how to make computing accessible to all young people. We are now continuing our work in this area with a new project called Roots, bridging our research team […]

Engaging Black students in computing at UK schools — interview with Joe Arday

26/10/2021 By Maria Richter

Reading Time: 7 minutesOn the occasion of Black History Month UK, we speak to Joe Arday, Computer Science teacher at Woodbridge High School in Essex, UK, about his experiences in computing education, his thoughts about underrepresentation of Black students in the subject, and his ideas about what needs to be done to engage more Black students. To start […]

Engaging Black students in computing at school — interview with Lynda Chinaka

12/10/2021 By Maria Richter

Reading Time: 10 minutesOn the occasion of Black History Month UK, we speak to Lynda Chinaka, Senior Lecturer in Computing in Education at the University of Roehampton, about her experiences in computing education, her thoughts about underrepresentation of Black students in the subject, and her ideas about what needs to be done to engage more Black students. Lynda, […]

Delivering a culturally relevant computing curriculum: new guide for teachers

05/08/2021 By Maria Richter

Reading Time: 7 minutesIn computing education, designing equitable and authentic learning experiences requires a conscious effort to take into account the characteristics of all learners and their social environments. Doing this allows teachers to address topics that are relevant to a diverse range of learners. To support computing and computer science teachers with this work, we’re now sharing […]

Our new SIGCSE Special Project on culturally relevant resources for computing

15/04/2021 By Maria Richter

Reading Time: 5 minutesOver the last 20 years, researchers and educators have increasingly aimed to develop computing curricula that are culturally responsive and relevant. Designing equitable and authentic learning experiences in computing requires conscious effort to take into account the characteristics of learners and their social environments, in order to address topics that are relevant to a diverse […]

What does equity-focused teaching mean in computer science education?

09/02/2021 By Maria Richter

Reading Time: 6 minutesToday, I discuss the second research seminar in our series of six free online research seminars focused on diversity and inclusion in computing education, where we host researchers from the UK and USA together with the Royal Academy of Engineering. By diversity, we mean any dimension that can be used to differentiate groups and people […]