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Abstracts of Recent Research Papers & 2001 Conference Presentations ABSTRACT: In this article, we discuss our efforts to build on previous anthropological studies of minority-student education in the United States first to design and then to investigate an after-school science and technology program for urban, low-income African American middle school girls. Based on data collected during the first six months of this program, we suggest that a recognition of the identities which these underachieving girls bring to the study of science and technology and an awareness of the social relationships that prompt these identities are significant in engaging the girls in school-related behaviors and topics. We conceive of the identities and social relationships as a set of ideological dimensions of contrast (parameters) that define the terms in which a girl is likely to respond to a given activity or person. Knowledge of these dimensions may allow science educators, teachers and parents to organize learning activities in such a way as to increase underachieving girls’ involvement in pro-academic work, especially when it involves topics like science and technology which girls so often eschew. ABSTRACT: In this paper we try to expand on the notion that a sense of place is important as a way for people to feel connected to their communities and to feel a sense of belonging. We discusses the 3-step process we used to identify a sense of place and community. First, we built upon gendered interests in computer technology by teaching multimedia authoring to African American middle school girls who attended after-school classes we designed. Then, we asked the students to create a multimedia presentation that reflected their community. The paper then shows how this information was used to create a community-based "Dog Unit" of curriculum for general biology. ABSTRACT: The purpose of this study was to investigate what happened when a multimedia software program was used to create a virtual “community of practice” as espoused by Jean Lave and Etienne Wenger in their book Situated Learning. The software was used as part of an environmental science unit in an after-school class for African American 8th grade girls. The results of an ethnographic investigation around their use of the software indicated that it allowed the girls to begin to form novice scientist identities and to participate in a trajectory which led them toward more expert identities. ABSTRACT: This paper reports on research designed to investigate the gender gap in technology by looking at ways that middle school African American girls are attracted to and master technology and at ways that teachers might build on student interest in technology to engage middle school students in other academic areas, like science, in which they have less interest. How can we identify interests in technology, especially those with a gender, cultural or community connection? How can the interests we identify be used to maintain engagement of girls with technology so they can become “technologically literate” not just proficient at chat rooms? We discuss two findings. Initially, we found that students were successful when we used “strands of interest.” Students would stay engaged with software that became ever increasingly more complex if the task presented to them looked slightly familiar and if they thought it was similar to something they had already used successfully. Prior experience with a similar but simpler software skill and prior success in using it seemed important in their ability to engage with a more complicated concept. Based on that analysis we developed the next set of lessons, on animation, using four different software programs, selecting a “module” (or discrete set of commands) from each that was similar to a module in the other programs. These units were also progressively more complex in presenting the same or a similar technology concept. This way the computer screen presented only a few “new” icons to each student and they could use new software commands to create something that was conceptually similar to what they already knew how to do. ABSTRACT: This paper looks at our initial attempts to identify "interests" of middle school African American girls in an after-school program that could be related to or incorporated into the study of science and technology. First, we look at several meanings of "authentic" and "multicultural" science. Then we asked, what are the community-based "goals, concerns, tools, & resources" of African American girls? How can these be used to motivate and extend their interest and activity in science? Using a "design study" and ethnographic data analysis, initial findings included that students identified a number of interests that did seem very promising (fashion design, hair, boys, rap stars) But then they voice another topics-- dogs. They know a lot about dogs, they claimed they knew more than they did, we weren't sure why they brought it up, they used topic to pursue their own (cute boys), and the positioning of dogs in their lives parallels their positioning in a white middle-class world. These findings suggest several implications for developing science for them: students already learned they are marginal, students already learned strategies to protect themselves from powerful adults and powerful discourses like science, for them to engage seriously in science is to violate unwritten rules of gender, race, class and age that structure their lives. If we want to change their lives, we also have to "undo" a lot. Return to Top |
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