ESportU Presents: Culturally Relevant Computing Technologies for Living Learning Communities

Framework

Living-Learning Communities are residential communities that embed a shared academic or thematic focus (Shapiro & Levine, 1999). Culturally Relevant Computing (CRC) is a learning theory that activates student’s prior knowledge, and focuses content and delivery in ways that provide social and civic empowerment (Hatley, Winston-Proctor, Paige, & Clark, 2017). CRC techniques have optimized STEM learning outcomes by prioritizing cultural responsiveness. This requires learning designers to review and consider the learner’s prior knowledge and meaning making, integrate engaging and motivational learning activities, and provide content that leads to social and civic empowerment (Scott, Sheridan & Clark 2014). These approaches have shown to produce increased levels of self-efficacy, a sense of belonging, and interest in computer science-related career fields (Hatley, Winston-Proctor, Paige, & Clark, 2017). In line with CRC, ESportsU will use a learning approach that:

• Believes all participants are capable of creating digital innovation
• Provides learning context to support transformational use of technology
• Encourages learning about one’s self along various intersecting socio-cultural lines
• Uses technology as a vehicle for reflection and understanding participant identities towards socially and culturally relevant curriculum
• Utilizes barometers for technological success that considers what participants create, for whom and to what ends (Hatley, Winston-Proctor, Paige, & Clark, 2017)

Therefore, ESportsU will address two pressing issues in STEM career readiness in the United States.
1) Commonplace misconceptions about difficulty and disconnection from STEM content 2) Widening underrepresented youth participation and social mobility as historically underrepresented populations have been left out of emerging tech innovations due to lack of access and motivation (DOE, 2016).

Methods

The ESportsU development strategy employs a design-based research (DBR) (Collins, 1992) approach to explore the overlapping nuances within the Esports industry by preparing and developing stakeholder relationships, investigate and develop support tools and learning materials, host STEM related work, create and disseminate online modules for STEM learning pathways. As with DBR, the findings from these investigations will determine the next steps through an iterative learning design process.

The research team conducted an experiment with two six-day sleep-away camp sessions. The control group, the first session of 16 participants, experienced a traditional game-based CRC STEM learning event. This camp resembled other STEM camps, such as iDTech (iDTech, 2018), that include traditional and individual techniques for STEM learning through the culturally relevant gaming lens of Overwatch. The experimental group, the second session of 15 participants, experienced the ESportsU enhanced Overwatch environment being more competitive, collaborative and team-based. Each morning students completed a 3hr STEM workshop within their game-themed ecosystems that included game design, computer graphics, tv/video production and digital media marketing.

To develop a pedagogical model through design-based research, ESportsU partnered with research consultants on Culturally Relevant Computing (Dr. Clark), Collect, Analyze, Synthesize, Employ, Evaluate (C.A.S.E.E) (Dr. Foster), and external evaluating (Dr. Gerber and Dr. Onwuegbuzie). DBR, or designed experiments, is a process of investigating to test and refine the educational design based on prior experiments to revise both theory and practice simultaneously (Brown, 1992; Collins, 1992). Using a concurrent mixed methods approach with exploratory factor analysis we assess attitudes and behaviors, potentially identifying powerful research outcomes that promote shared accountability for educational quality (Johnson & Onwuegbuzie, 2004).

The study collected such data from included junior researchers (4), a camp director (1), instructors (4), mentors (8), and participants (31). The research team collected observation notes, individual and group interviews, daily reflection journal and survey instruments such as fidelity checks, exit interviews, daily reflections, precamp expectations, behavioral analysis and a reflection C.A.S.E.E. survey. This data collates to approximately more than 2.3 terabytes of video & photos, eighth 3hr workshops and 10 evenings of living & learning community informal cultural data.

Results

Our analysis of results is ongoing as we analyze 2.3 Terabytes of data, from over 6 unique survey instruments, and coordinate with our senior research consultant and external evaluators. However, the preliminary findings show promise for examining participants’ attitudes, awareness, and motivations to pursue STEM precursor habits of mind and CRC practices that enhance participant understanding of and interest in STEM occupations.

Interest in entering post-secondary education after the camp experience grew by 75% and interest in pursuing a digital media career grew 25% after the camp experience. 96.7% of campers expressed interest in returning to the camp next year. The first group of campers, from at least 4 different school districts, developed a collaborative Discord server dedicated to continuing their relationships by spending time together outside of the camp.

Mentors were upperclassmen within the majors of computer science, digital media technologies, and even esports. Mentors reported the camp provided improvement of their own digital media skills and extraordinarily and unexpectedly rewarding interactions with campers . In fact, one reflected, "My favorite part about this camp is hearing how much it has changed kids’ lives. I had multiple conversations with them about what they learned and experienced during the camp has made them realize what they want to do for the rest of their lives as their careers." (Mentor 3)

Instructors deemed the hybrid learning model a success and felt comfortable adopting the game-based learning tools such as Bluetooth headsets, streaming platforms and robot cameras to reach all students. Instructors also expressed that the Esports-themed camp resulted in higher quality student products and digital artifacts in comparison to those from the individual VG camp.

As we develop high-quality learning pathways for youth in our area, several of these preliminary findings helped develop an Online Graduate Certification as well as an Esports Undergraduate Track within our Digital Media Technologies Department. Additionally, partnering with a local Intermediate Unit and urban HS, the findings are guiding the design and implementation of customized Esports content to accompany their emerging Esports programs. This escalator to success develops a pathway for our target population to cultivate skills in HS, engage in STEM career development in undergraduate and even pursue mastery level graduate opportunities.

Importance

Competitive gaming research currently speaks to the engaging socio-cultural importance and potential for significant meaning making development within social peer groupings (Anderson, et al., 2018; Cranmer, et al., 2021; Reitman, et al., 2020). However, links between highly competitive commercial gaming practices and STEM career readiness competencies are less represented. Culturally Relevant Computing (CRC) leverages the relevance of everyday experiences of groups with shared values and beliefs in well-designed mentoring environments to enhance computational thinking and improve positive attitudes towards STEM fields for traditionally underrepresented populations (Hatley, Winston-Proctor, Paige & Clark, 2017). Therefore, within educational and scientific literature, our investigation will add to the current literature by examining the intersection of Esports activities and STEM career readiness through CRC goals. Specifically, that all students are capable of digital innovation, learning context supports transformational use of technology, identity formation along intersecting sociocultural lines allows for innovation, technology should be a vehicle for students to reflect and demonstrate understanding of identities and barometers of tech success should consider who creates, for whom and to what end.

Furthermore, competitive gaming has already demonstrated increased critical thinking and problem-solving skills, higher levels of interest in STEM fields for competitive gamers, productive risk taking, and reflective techniques for collaborative learning in real-world settings. The current project has potential to onboard learners into 21st-century careers and create gateway activities to deepen STEM competencies that exist within the Esports industry. ESportsU may also provide a template to reach other segments of disadvantaged populations using an Esports mechanism to do so. Engaging a new generation of learners may require stepping into their participatory networks, and leveraging unique ecosystems, to develop untapped career STEM skills. The current project facilitates the conditions and tools necessary to build a sustainable knowledge-sharing program for modern learners through student-centered STEM learning pathways. Ultimately, ESportsU will create a transformational Esports experience that can impact underrepresented students’ ability to see their future in creative digital media by developing post-secondary STEM career pathways.

References

References
Anderson, C. G., Tsaasan, A. M., Reitman, J., Lee, J. S., Wu, M., Steel, H., ... & Steinkuehler, C. (2018, September). Understanding esports as a stem career ready curriculum in the wild. In 2018 10th International Conference on Virtual Worlds and Games for Serious Applications (VS-Games) (pp. 1-6). IEEE.

Barron, B., Gomez, K., Pinkard, N., & Martin, C. K. (2014). The Digital Youth Network: Cultivating new media citizenship in urban communities. Boston, MA: MIT Press.

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3

Brown, A. L. (1992). Design experiments: Theoretical and methodological challenges in creating complex interventions in classroom settings. The Journal of the Learning Sciences, 2(2): 141-178.

Collins, A. (1992). Towards a design science of education. In E. Scanlon & T. O’Shea (Eds.), New directions in educational technology (pp. 15-22). Berlin: Springer.

Costello, V. (2017). Multimedia foundations: Core concepts for digital designs. Burlington, MA: Taylor and Francis.

Cranmer, E. E., Han, D. I. D., van Gisbergen, M., & Jung, T. (2021). Esports matrix: Structuring the esports research agenda. Computers in Human Behavior, 117, 106671.

Department of Health Services, (2016). STEM designated degree program list. Retrieved from https://www.ice.gov/sites/default/files/documents/Document/2016/stem-list.pdf

Earnst & Young (May 2018). Research Reveals Boys’ Interest in STEM Careers Declining; Girls’ Interest Unchanged. Retrieved from https://www.ey.com/us/en/newsroom/news-releases/news- ey-research-reveals-boys-interest-in-stem-careers-declining-girls-interest-unchanged

Authors (2021). ESportsU Digital Warrior Camp: Creating an Esports-Based Culturally Relevant Computing Living Learning Camp. In Handbook of Research on Pathways and Opportunities Into the Business of Esports (pp. 239-268). IGI Global.

Author (2016). Call of Duty for Adolescent Boys: An ethnographic phenomenology of the experiences within a gaming culture.

Author (2017). eSports Gaming and You. Educational Technology, 62-64.

Florida Department of Children and Families (2012). Local Children in Foster Care Get “Stellar” Experience at STEM Camp. Retrieved from http://www.myflfamilies.com/press-release/local-
children-foster-care-get-%E2%80%9Cstellar%E2%80%9D-experience-stem-camp

Giammarco, E. A., Schneider, T. J., Carswell, J. J., & Knipe, W. S. (2015). Video game preferences and their relation to career interests. Personality and Individual Differences, 73 (1), 98–104.

Hatley, L., Winston-Proctor, C. E., Paige, G. M., & Clark, K. (2017). Culture and Computational Thinking. Culture, Learning, and Technology: Research and Practice, 109.

Author (2016). Knowledge production in e-sports culture: Learning with and from the masters. In Examining the Evolution of Gaming and Its Impact on Social, Cultural, and Political Perspectives (pp. 238-257). IGI Global.

iDTech (2018). 2018 Summer tech courses. Retrieved from https://www.idtech.com/compare-programs Indeed (2018). Esports jobs. Retrieved from https://www.indeed.com/jobs?q=esports+job&l=

Johnson, R. B., & Onwuegbuzie, A. J. (2004). Mixed methods research: A research paradigm whose time has come. Educational researcher, 33(7), 14-26.

Joseph, R., & Diamond, J. (2017). iDESIGN: Designing and implementing a culturally relevant game-based curriculum. In A. D. Benson, R. Joseph, & J. L. Moore (Eds.), Culture, learning and technology: Research and practice (pp. 151–164). New York: Routledge.

League of Legends (2017). LOL ESorts Events by the Numbers. Retrieved from https://www.lolesports.com/en_US/articles/2017-events-by-the-numbers

Lenhart, A. (2015). Teens, technology and friendship. Retrieved from http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/08/06/teens-technology-and-friendships/

Liteplo, A. S., Carmody, K., Fields, M. J., Liu, R. B., & Lewiss, R. E. (2018). SonoGames: Effect of an Innovative Competitive Game on the Education, Perception, and Use of Point‐of‐Care Ultrasound. Journal of Ultrasound in Medicine.

Malyn-Smith, J., Blustein, D., Pillai, S., Parker, C. E., Gutowski, E., & Diamonti, A. J. (2018). Building the Foundational Skills Needed for Success in Work at the Human-Technology Frontier. In Conference proceedings (p. 345). libreriauniversitaria: it Edizioni.

Inkelas, K. K., Szelenyi, K. Soldner, M., Brower, A., & Alvarez, P. (2007). National Study of Living Learning Programs: 2007 report of findings. Retrieved from http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.864.9177&rep=rep1&type=pdf

Funk, C., Parker, K. (2018). Women and Men in STEM Often at Odds Over Workplace Equity. Retrieved from http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2018/01/09/women-and-men-in-stem-often-at-odds-over-
workplace-equity/

Richard, G. T., Giri, S., McKinley, Z., & Ashley, R. W. (2018, June). Blended making: multi-interface designs and e-crafting with elementary and middle school youth. In Proceedings of the 17th ACM Conference on Interaction Design and Children (pp. 675-680). ACM.

Reitman, J. G., Anderson-Coto, M. J., Wu, M., Lee, J. S., & Steinkuehler, C. (2020). Esports research: A literature review. Games and Culture, 15(1), 32-50.

Scott, K., Sheridan, K.M., & Clark, K. (2015). Culturally responsive computing: A theory revisited. Learning, Media and Technology, 40(4), 412–436.

Shapiro, N. S., & Levine, J. H. (1999). Creating Learning Communities: A Practical Guide to Winning Support, Organizing for Change, and Implementing Programs. Jossey-Bass Higher and Adult Education Series. Jossey-Bass Inc., Publishers, 350 Sansome St., San Francisco, CA 94104.

Steinkuehler, C. (2011). The mismeasure of boys: Reading and online videogames. Madison: Wisconsin Center for Education Research, University of Wisconsin.

Steinkuehler, C., & Duncan, S. (2008). Scientific habits of mind in virtual worlds. Journal of Science Education and Technology, 17(6), 530-543.

United States Census Bureau (2018). Quick Facts. Retrieved from https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US/PST045217

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration (2016). Foster care statistics 2016. Retrieved from https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubPDFs/foster.pdf#page=8&view=Race%20and%20ethnicity

US Department of Education (2016). Students in foster care. Retrieved from https://www2.ed.gov/about/inits/ed/foster-care/index.html

Author (2017). Boys and video game play. Culture, Learning, and Technology: Research and Practice, 165.