1. Making Learning Visible in Computer Science Classrooms
Keywords: DIY, HCI, Learning, Making, Studio Pedagogy, Augmented Reality
Making Learning Visible in Computer Science Classrooms
Betsy DiSalvo, PhD

2. Why? What Problem are you solving?
Computer Science classrooms:
Have low retention rates
Are defensive environments, don’t support a community of learners
Have traditional teaching methods that rely on top down instruction
Focus on individual work, rather than group work
Are lead by teachers who frequently believe there is a “geek gene”
What are your educational objectives?
To make students’ work visible and persistent in the classroom through physical computing and augmented reality (AR) projections.
increasing reflection
developing metacognition
increasing interaction creating better learning communities

3. When?
NSF Award in 2014 to study Maker Oriented Learning in Undergraduate CS Education
Undergrad maker curricula in two courses:
Mobile and Ubiquitous Computing (MUC), 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016
Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), 2015, 2016
“This has changed the way I teach. I won’t ever teach like I did before.” Dr. Gregory Abowd, Full Professor
Design and study of AR tools in one course:
Computational Media (CM), 2016

4. Where?
Georgia Tech: Work closely with 5 faculty collaborators teaching MUC, HCI and Computational Media. Presented at GVU luncheon to 50+ attendees.
Interaction Design for Children (IDC) Conference: Taught a course on maker based approach to teaching interaction design to faculty from 5 institutions.
Microsoft: Presented AR technology and studio arts pedagogy to Microsoft employees promoting and interest in developing AR technology for the classroom
Internationally: Presented related research at conferences on computer science education (SIGCSE), learning sciences (ICLS), and interaction design (IDC).
In Development
Georgia Tech: Developing new classes for the use of augmented reality projection.
Nationally: Working with industry partners to further develop educational breadboards for prototyping in classrooms.
Internationally: Developing a course for CHI and Ubiquitous Computing conferences on teaching with a maker based approach.

5. What? Scaffolding for Classroom Critiques Hands on Activities: BitBlox
Deconstructing and reverse engineering handheld devices
Physical prototyping with interactive lamp
Wearable prototyping for specific body part
BitBlox
a breadboard for educational settings
Heuristics
For toolkits and workbenches
For classroom layout
AR Projection Technology for Classroom

6. Dr. Mark Guzdial, Full Professor
Prognosis?
Evaluation
Scaling
Students noticed and commented on their peers work
Training support for faculty
Developing physical artifacts
Students gained inspiration from each other
“The technology allowed me to shift the focus of attention to the students, and away from the teacher's screen...students could get a sense of the range of possibilities by just looking around them.”
Students could measure their progress and seek help if needed.
“You could see who had already fully understood the topic and who had completed the task and then you could ask them for help if you needed too, or people who are struggling you could help them.” student
Dr. Mark Guzdial, Full Professor
Challenges
Faculty do not want to move to a more active learning approach
Physical computing is new and intimidating to many faculty