KNITTING CODE: EXAMINING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN KNITTING AND COMPUTATIONAL THINKING SKILLS USING THE NEXUS OF PRACTICE

Due to the rise of careers in STEM-related fields, there is a growing need for schools to produce people to fill these positions. One area of STEM that is growing is computer science/coding. Due to this demand, schools need to be intentional about exposing students to computer science/coding. There are a variety of new tools to introduce students to this field. One growing belief is that knitting can teach computer science/coding to students. The goal of this study was to see if knitting can serve as an introduction to teach students computation skills. Kitting has historically been used to code information, and numerous statements have been made that knitting can teach computer coding. The rationale behind this thought is that both fields have similar components and can serve to make coding more accessible to a broader audience. Suppose students that generally would not identify with computer science/coding due to perceived social norms develop an interest in knitting. In that case, they could use what they learned as a foundation to develop an interest in computer coding. This is based on Scollon\u27s Nexus of Practice (2001), which studies how practices are linked together. This theory believes that combining different practices makes a possible crossover from one practice to another. As a result, what may not have been accessible at first due to biases or identity, may become more accessible. This study will focus on whether knitting can teach students computational skills and change students’ identity towards computer science/coding. There is limited research on the relationship between knitting and coding. This case study attempted to determine if knitting could teach coding. The research was conducted during two three-week summer enrichment programs. Results revealed that teaching computer coding through knitting was comparable to traditional instruction. While not necessarily better, this shows that knitting can teach computation skills and improve identity. This could be important for encouraging students that would not typically study computer science/coding to enter the field

Design-activity-sequence: A case study and polyphonic analysis of learning in a digital design thinking workshop

In this case study, we report on the outcomes of a one-day workshop on design thinking attended by participants from the Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning conference in Philadelphia in 2017. We highlight the interactions between the workshop design, structured as a design thinking process around the design of a digital environment for design thinking, and the diverse backgrounds and interests of its participants. Data from in-workshop reflections and post-workshop interviews were analyzed using a novel set of analytical approaches, a combination the facilitators made by possible by welcoming participants as coresearchers

ICS Materials. Towards a re-Interpretation of material qualities through interactive, connected, and smart materials.

The domain of materials for design is changing under the influence of an increased technological advancement, miniaturization and democratization. Materials are becoming connected, augmented, computational, interactive, active, responsive, and dynamic. These are ICS Materials, an acronym that stands for Interactive, Connected and Smart. While labs around the world are experimenting with these new materials, there is the need to reflect on their potentials and impact on design. This paper is a first step in this direction: to interpret and describe the qualities of ICS materials, considering their experiential pattern, their expressive sensorial dimension, and their aesthetic of interaction. Through case studies, we analyse and classify these emerging ICS Materials and identified common characteristics, and challenges, e.g. the ability to change over time or their programmability by the designers and users. On that basis, we argue there is the need to reframe and redesign existing models to describe ICS materials, making their qualities emerge

Summer of Tinkering: Sociocultural Views of Children's Learning while Tinkering in Social and Material Worlds

abstract: As interest in making and STEM learning through making and tinkering continue to rise, understanding the nature, process, and benefits of learning STEM through making have become important topics for research. In addition to understanding the basics of learning through making and tinkering, we need to understand these activities, examine their potential benefits, and find out ways to facilitate such learning experiences for all learners with resources that are readily available. This dissertation is a study of children’s learning while tinkering inspired by the Educational Maker Movement. It is motivated by the projects that children playfully create with broken toys, art and craft resources, and other found objects, and the connections of such activities to learning. Adopting a sociocultural lens this dissertation examines eight to twelve-year-olds’ learning while tinkering in collaboration with friends and family, as well as on their own. Using a case study methodology and studying interactions and transactions between children, materials, tools, and designs this study involves children learning while tinkering over a week-long workshop as well as over the summer in the Southwest. The three hallmarks of this study are, first, an emphasis on sociocultural nature of the development of tinkering projects; second, an emphasis on meaning making while tinkering with materials, tools, and design, and problem-solving; and third, an examination of the continuation of tinkering using newly acquired tools and skills beyond the duration of the workshop. In doing so, this dissertation contributes to the ongoing discussion of children’s playful tinkering, how and why it counts as learning, and STEM learning associated with tinkering. Implications for future learning and the ways in which tinkering connects to children’s everyday fabric of activities are considered.Dissertation/ThesisDoctoral Dissertation Learning, Literacies and Technologies 201

ICS Materials

This present book covers a series of outstanding reputation researchers’ contributions on the topic of ICS Materials: a new class of emerging materials with properties and qualities concerning interactivity, connectivity and intelligence. In the general framework of ICS Materials’ domain, each chapter deals with a specific aspect following the characteristic perspective of each researcher. As result, methods, tools, guidelines emerged that are relevant and applicable to several contexts such as product, interaction design, materials science and many more

Invention Pedagogy – The Finnish Approach to Maker Education

This collection, edited and written by the leading scholars and experts of innovation and maker education in Finland, introduces invention pedagogy, a research-based Finnish approach for teaching and learning through multidisciplinary, creative design and making processes in formal school settings. The book outlines the background of, and need for, invention pedagogy, providing various perspectives for designing and orchestrating the invention process while discusses what can be learnt and how learning happens through inventing. In addition, the book introduces the transformative, school-level innovator agency needed for developing whole schools as innovative communities. Featuring informative case study examples, the volume explores the theoretical, pedagogical, and methodological implications for the research and practice of invention pedagogy in order to further the field and bring new perspectives, providing a new vision for schools for decades to come. Intermixing the results of cutting-edge research and best practice within STEAM-education and invention pedagogy, this book will be essential reading for researchers, students, and scholars of design and technology education, STEM education, teacher education, and learning sciences more broadly

Research and innovation 2019

Research and innovation are two pillars that come together when universities are at stake. The expansion of the frontiers of human knowledge, in all areas and disciplines, is an irrefutable commitment of higher education institutions. Together with public and private entities, they are also committed to promoting knowledge transfer to society and the economy, in the form of new ideas, new products and new processes. Universities are supposed to transform ideas into value for society. To achieve these goals, higher education institutions have to assure their human resources are highly qualified, that they have an adequate atmosphere, that research is of high quality, and finally that adequate interactions take place. At UMinho we have a clear strategy to be an open and permanent space for knowledge production and furtherance of nationally and internationally relevant innovation across different social and economic sectors. For many years, UMinho has adopted the principles of open access and open science. We aim at carrying out our scientific activity and the dissemination of the corresponding results transparently and collaboratively; this implies that researchers, citizens, policymakers, state agencies, companies, and third sector organizations work in close cooperation facing research and innovation processes. We believe this is the shorter way to trigger smart and sustainable growth and qualified job creation. At UMinho, we encourage the coupling between research and education. Our goal is to expand research opportunities and to give our students occasions to experience vibrant research environments, ensuring that learning goes beyond the “common” routines. Joining research and learning processes provides both undergraduate and postgraduate students with opportunities to own their learning process. We believe that research experience has a role to play in improving students’ motivation for learning, in the pursuit of their interests. Doing better science occurs when we make it both more sensitive to the needs of society and also more efficient in what concerns the allocated resources. It is also a question of accountability. This is fundamental for reinforcing society awareness about our contributions to human and social development. Following the 2018 publication, we present here the 2019 edition of Research and Innovation, a series that draws on the outcomes of the activity of the UMinho research and innovation ecosystem. This comprehensive volume gives particular emphasis to the Research Units outcomes, namely in terms of funding, research projects, papers, and the most important achievements; the activity of the Interface Units and Collaborative Laboratories in which UMinho participates is also reported, through their activities and institutional projects, making evident their importance for the continuous growth of our Institution, our region, and our country. Rui Vieira de Castro RectorPublishe

ICS Materials

This present book covers a series of outstanding reputation researchers’ contributions on the topic of ICS Materials: a new class of emerging materials with properties and qualities concerning interactivity, connectivity and intelligence. In the general framework of ICS Materials’ domain, each chapter deals with a specific aspect following the characteristic perspective of each researcher. As result, methods, tools, guidelines emerged that are relevant and applicable to several contexts such as product, interaction design, materials science and many more