Embodied Software Cities as a Gateway to Inclusive Computer Science Education

Investigators @RILL: Sarah Hofer

Collaborators: Frieder Loch (OST – Ostschweizer Fachhochschule)

Duration: December 2022 (start)

Funding: Wilhelm Stemmer-Stiftung, Asuera Stiftung, Hasler Stiftung

Main Goals: Dealing with program code has now become a fundamental skill for numerous professions. However, the development of these skills has not yet been widely incorporated into institutional education in schools but rather depends more on extracurricular activities and interests. Innovative, inspiring, and accessible opportunities for learning in the field of computer science can play a crucial role in igniting a passion for programming in young people regardless of their background. In this project, we aim to introduce a Virtual Reality-supported learning environment in schools, allowing children and adolescents with little prior knowledge or initial interest to access computer science.

Key Methods: We are developing high-quality learning situations with a focus on the principles of Embodied Cognition and the use of analogies to facilitate the understanding of abstract program code concepts. Both the physical experience (Embodiment) of abstract learning content in immersive Virtual Reality environments and the use of familiar concepts as analogies for more abstract relationships have already proven to be promising methods for enhancing the understanding of complex content in research. In this context, program code can be depicted as a city, with interconnected parts of the software represented as neighborhoods, and functions or individual classes as houses. The depiction of the houses depends on various properties of the code. For instance, modules where many calculations are performed can be visualized with brightly lit windows. This city can then be explored physically and immersively using a Virtual Reality headset. These Embodied Software Cities will be explored together with the children and teenagers in two school hours at primary and secondary schools.
For empirical evaluation, we will compare the understanding of program code, as well as the future-oriented and immediate interest and motivation before and after the learning sessions. After an initial successful evaluation, the project will be continued and expanded to provide an early positive experience with program code to a larger number of children and adolescents.

Practical Relevance: These learning situations are intended to make it easier for children and teenagers, especially those from less privileged backgrounds and girls, to access computer science, starting in primary school and continuing through secondary school.