Collaborative Research: Engaging Blind and Visually Impaired Youth in Computer Science through Music Programming

合作研究：通过音乐编程让盲人和视障青少年参与计算机科学

• 批准号: 2300631
• 负责人: Brian Magerko
• 金额: $ 212.45万
• 依托单位: Georgia Tech Research Corporation
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-06-01 至 2026-05-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2300631&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Engaging; Blind; Visually

Many digital platforms for learning computer science have been designed for sighted people, resulting in a limited number of accessible opportunities for blind and visually impaired youth to learn computer science. This project will address this opportunity gap when blind and visually impaired youth, their caregivers, their educators, and software developers iteratively co-design and evaluate a digital learning environment that teaches computer science through music programming. In this learning environment, youth (ages 12-17) will write code to compose music and to remix music samples from popular contemporary artists. Specifically, this project will result in a more accessible version of EarSketch, a widely-used online platform for learning to code through music programming. This project will also result in associated professional learning and teaching materials for educators of blind and visually impaired youth. Research will explore whether and how the digital learning environment results in numerous positive outcomes among the youth who use it. Ultimately, this project is likely to address the underrepresentation of blind and visually impaired people in computing fields through resulting in an accessible, engaging, freely-available, widely-disseminated platform for learning to code through auditory mediums.Blind and visually impaired youth, their families, educators, educational researchers, software developers, and music programmers will be involved in the iterative co-design and evaluation of an accessible digital learning environment that teaches coding through music programming. Participatory design studies will explore the elements of the digital learning environment that afford music programming and computing education for learners who are blind or visually impaired. These design studies will entail thematic analyses of interviews, focus groups, and concurrent protocols with educators at schools for the blind, blind or visually impaired youth in middle or high schools, and their caregivers. Observation studies of blind or visually impaired software developers and music programmers will provide further information about elements of accessible coding platforms. Additionally, mixed methods research will explore whether and how the digital learning environment fostered content knowledge gain, interest development, feelings of belonging, and intent to persist in computer science among middle and high school students who are blind or visually impaired. Analyses of validated pre- and post-surveys, as well as student interaction logs and interviews, will provide information relative to whether and how the learning environment fostered positive outcomes in these domains. The no-cost, field-tested, empirically based learning environment will be widely disseminated through numerous professional networks for researchers and practitioners. Additionally, teachers from schools for the blind across the country will have opportunities to participate in professional learning sessions on how to use the learning environment and its associated curricular materials. This project is funded by the Discovery Research preK-12 (DRK-12) program, which seeks to significantly enhance the learning and teaching of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) by preK-12 students and teachers, through research and development of innovative resources, models and tools. Projects in the DRK-12 program build on fundamental research in STEM education and prior research and development efforts that provide theoretical and empirical justification for proposed projects.This project is co-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 project is co-funded by the CS for All: Research and RPPs program. This program aims to provide all U.S. students with meaningful opportunities to participate in computer science education in their schools at the Prek-12 levels. Computer science, in this program, includes use of computational tools, but also the broad range of understandings, competencies, and skills needed to apply computation in our digital world. These are often referred to as computational literacy.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.

许多学习计算机科学的数字平台都是为视力人设计的，为盲人和视力障碍的青年学习计算机科学的机会有限。当盲人和视力障碍的年轻人，他们的看护人，教育者和软件开发人员迭代共同设计并评估通过音乐节目教授计算机科学的数字学习环境时，该项目将解决这个机会差距。在这种学习环境中，青年（12-17岁）将编写代码以创作音乐和从流行的当代艺术家的混音音乐样本。具体而言，该项目将导致更容易访问的Earsketch，这是一个广泛使用的在线平台，用于通过音乐编程来学习编码。该项目还将为盲人和视力障碍青年的教育者提供相关的专业学习和教材。研究将探讨数字学习环境是否以及如何在使用它的年轻人中产生许多积极的结果。最终，该项目可能会通过导致可访问，引人入胜，自由易于访问，广泛删除的平台来解决计算领域中盲人和视觉障碍的人的代表性不足，以通过听觉媒体进行编码，以实现听觉和视觉上的障碍和视觉障碍的青年，他们的家庭，教育工作者，教育工作者，教育研究人员，软件开发人员，软件和音乐的访问，并涉及涉及的环境，并涉及涉及的环境，并涉及涉及的环境，并且涉及涉及的环境，并且涉及涉及的环境。通过音乐编程教编码。参与性设计研究将探索为盲人或视力障碍的学习者提供音乐节目和计算教育的数字学习环境的要素。这些设计研究将需要与学校的教育工作者进行访谈，焦点小组和同时协议的主题分析。对盲人或视觉障碍的软件开发人员和音乐程序员的观察研究将提供有关可访问编码平台元素的更多信息。此外，混合方法研究将探讨数字学习环境是否以及如何培养内容知识的增益，兴趣发展，归属感以及意图在盲人或视力障碍的中学生中坚持计算机科学的意图。对经过验证的前后和后疗法以及学生互动日志和访谈的分析将提供有关学习环境是否以及如何促进这些领域积极成果的信息。无需现场测试，基于经验的学习环境将通过众多专业网络为研究人员和从业人员广泛传播。此外，全国盲人学校的教师将有机会参加有关如何使用学习环境及其相关课程材料的专业学习会议。该项目由Discovery Research PreK-12（DRK-12）计划资助，该计划旨在通过创新资源，模型和工具的研究和开发，旨在通过Prek-12学生和教师的Prek-12学生和教师来显着增强科学，技术，工程和数学（STEM）的学习和教学。 Projects in the DRK-12 program build on fundamental research in STEM education and prior research and development efforts that provide theoretical and empirical justification for proposed projects.This project is co-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技术（ICT）职业。该项目由CS共同资助：研究和RPPS计划。该计划旨在为所有美国学生提供有意义的机会，以在PreK-12级别参加其学校的计算机科学教育。在此程序中，计算机科学包括使用计算工具，以及在我们的数字世界中应用计算所需的广泛理解，能力和技能。这些通常被称为计算素养。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为是值得通过基金会的知识分子优点和更广泛影响的审查标准来评估值得支持的。