Yasmin B. Kafai

Minds in Play: Computer Game Design as a Context for Children's Learning

Originally published in Contemporary Psychology: APA Review of Books, 1996, Vol 41(12), 1221. This article reviews the book “Minds in Play: Computer Game Design as a Context for Childrens Learning,” by Yasmin B. Kafai (See record 1994-98802-000). The reviewer briefly examines selected chapters of the text and concludes the review with praise for the authors work. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved)

Playing and Making Games for Learning Instructionist and Constructionist Perspectives for Game Studies

This article presents an overview of what we know about two perspectives, coined instructionist and constructionist, to games for learning. The instructionists, accustomed to thinking in terms of making instructional educational materials, turn naturally to the concept of designing instructional games. Far fewer people have sought to turn the tables: by making games for learning instead of playing games for learning. Rather than embedding “lessons” directly in games, constructionists have focused their efforts on providing students with greater opportunities to construct their own games—and to construct new relationships with knowledge in the process. Research has only begun to build a body of experience that willmake us believe in the value of playing and making games for learning.

Scratch: A Sneak Preview

Scratch is a networked, media-rich programmingenvironment designed to enhance the development oftechnological fluency at after-school centers ineconomically-disadvantaged communities. Just as theLEGO MindStorms robotics kit added programmabilityto an activity deeply rooted in youth culture (buildingwith LEGO bricks), Scratch adds programmability tothe media-rich and network-based activities that aremost popular among youth at after-school computercenters. Taking advantage of the extraordinaryprocessing power of current computers, Scratchsupports new programming paradigms and activitiesthat were previously infeasible, making it betterpositioned to succeed than previous attempts tointroduce programming to youth.Our working hypothesis is that, as kids work onpersonally meaningful Scratch projects such asanimated stories, games, and interactive art, they willdevelop technological fluency, mathematical andproblem solving skills, and a justifiable self-confidencethat will serve them well in the wider spheres of theirlives.

Scratch: a sneak preview [education]

Scratch is a networked, media-rich programming environment designed to enhance the development of technological fluency at after-school centers in economically-disadvantaged communities. Just as the LEGO MindStorms robotics kit added programmability to an activity deeply rooted in youth culture (building with LEGO bricks), Scratch adds programmability to the media-rich and network-based activities that are most popular among youth at after-school computer centers. Taking advantage of the extraordinary processing power of current computers, Scratch supports programming paradigms and activities that were previously infeasible, making it better positioned to succeed than previous attempts to introduce programming to youth. Our working hypothesis is that, as kids work on personally meaningful Scratch projects such as animated stories, games, and interactive art, they develop technological fluency, mathematical and problem solving skills, and a justifiable self-confidence that serves them well in the wider spheres of their lives.

A Crafts-Oriented Approach to Computing in High School: Introducing Computational Concepts, Practices, and Perspectives with Electronic Textiles

In this article, we examine the use of electronic textiles (e-textiles) for introducing key computational concepts and practices while broadening perceptions about computing. The starting point of our work was the design and implementation of a curriculum module using the LilyPad Arduino in a pre-AP high school computer science class. To understand students’ learning, we analyzed the structure and functionality of their circuits and program code as well as their design approaches to making and debugging their e-textile creations and their views of computing. We also studied students’ changing perceptions of computing. Our discussion addresses the need for and design of scaffolded challenges and the potential for using crafts materials and activities such as e-textiles for designing introductory courses that can broaden participation in computing.

Children's Participation in a Virtual Epidemic in the Science Classroom: Making Connections to Natural Infectious Diseases.

This study investigated students’ understanding of a virtual infectious disease in relation to their understanding of natural infectious diseases. Two sixth-grade classrooms of students between the ages of 10 and 12 (46 students) took part in a participatory simulation of a virtual infectious disease, which was integrated into their science curriculum. The results from our analyses reveal that students perceived the simulation as similar to a natural infectious disease and that the immersive components of the simulation afforded students the opportunity to discuss their understandings of natural disease and to compare them to their experiences with the virtual disease. We found that while the virtual disease capitalized on students’ knowledge of natural infectious disease through virtual symptoms, these symptoms may have led students to think of its transfer more as an observable or mechanical event rather than as a biological process. These findings provide helpful indicators to science educators and educational designers interested in creating and integrating online simulations within classroom environments to further students’ conceptual understanding.

Affordances of Collaborative Software Design Planning for Elementary Students' Science Talk.

Although educational research and practice has found many benefits of long-term and complex design activities, an issue of growing concern is that students might lose sight of science learning while diverting their attention to design aesthetics, collaborative management, and technology. A question is whether or not science is actually separate from these aspects; it may be that science permeates the design environment and is thus contexted within these other activities. To investigate this possibility we followed a classroom of 33 students, divided into 7 teams, and we examined their science discussions as they planned for creating instructional software designs. Specifically, we investigated which conversational contexts gave rise to science talk. We found that a focus on the fine-grained details of the instructional science designs themselves and the contributions of more design-experienced students played an important role in the sophistication of the science content in the planning discussions. In examining less productive contexts for science talk, we found that a conversational focus in planning discussions on collaboration and software issues, as well as the science focus of the software designs, impacted the quality of science integration. In our discussion, we address the issue of which design contexts afford opportunities for richer discourse and the implications for other project-based design activities.

Computer Programming Goes Back to School

Learning programming introduces students to solving problems, designing applications, and making connections online.

Entering the Clubhouse: Case Studies of Young Programmers Joining the Online Scratch Communities

Previous efforts in end-user development have focused on facilitating the mechanics of learning programming, leaving aside social and cultural factors equally important in getting youth engaged in programming. As part of a 4-month long ethnographic study, we followed two 12-year-old participants as they learned the programming software Scratch and its associated file-sharing site, scratch.mit.edu, in an after-school club and class. In our discussion, we focus on the role that agency, membership, and status played in their joining and participating in local and online communities of programmers.

Life in the Times of Whypox: A Virtual Epidemic as a Community Event

In the past ten years, multiplayer games have increased in popularity with now millions of players spending dozens of hours or more online each week. Researchers have documented many aspects of the activities and motivations of players highlighting how players in these communities are defined by a common set of endeavors and social practices. (2003) called game communities for this reason ‘affinity’ groups. Often particular practices such as avatar selling and adena farming or events such as warrior revolts and virtual elections are used to illustrate issues with community norms (Steinkuehler, 2006), ownership and freedom of expression (Taylor, 2002; 2005) in virtual worlds. With few exceptions (Cassell, Huffaker, Tversky, & Ferriman, 2006), most of these practices and events have been emergent phenomena.