Research title & link: Ethnocomputing with electronic textiles: Culturally responsive open design to broaden participation in computing in American Indian youth and communities
Kafai, Searle, Martinez, and Brayboy (2014) used Eglash’s ethnocomputing concept in an intervention using e-textiles, with the Lilypad Arduino sew-able electronic circuits, leveraging traditional sewing and decorative beading to learn about computing. They reported that while the activities were intended to be linked to Indigenous culture, not all the students were interested in these links, and sometimes students lacked the cultural knowledge that the activities were supposed to connect to. They note complex issues here: “Craft, like many other types of Indigenous knowledge, is rooted in particular places and connected to activities that extend beyond the space of a classroom and a computer screen. For instance, when we think about integrating community basket weaving practices with e-textiles materials, we know that there are certain times of the year during which reeds for making baskets can be collected. We also know that particular designs have cosmological significance, ties to origin stories, and are expressed within local aesthetic frameworks. Knowledges of these designs is not something that can be learned by anyone, but something that the learner must be prepared to know, coming to understand the responsibility that comes with such knowledge and the protocols for appropriate use.” (p. 245)
Kafai et al. (p.243-244)
In conclusion, the researchers advocated that Indigenous students be given agency in order to construct computational designs that are relevant to their interests and identities (Kafai et al., 2014). They added that it is crucial to place the computer science learning in the context of Indigenous knowledge, so students can connect what they are learning to their history and emergence of their communities in ways that can meaningfully broaden participation in computing (Kafai et al., 2014).
Reference
- Kafai, Y., Searle, K., Martinez, C. & Brayboy, B. (2014). Ethnocomputing with electronic textiles: Culturally responsive open design to broaden participation in computing in American Indian youth and communities. SIGCSE 2014 – Proceedings of the 45th ACM Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education. 241-246. DOI:10.1145/2538862.2538903.