Multiple case study of nerd identity in a CS1 class

Authors:
Don Davis;Timothy Yuen;Matthew Berland
Affiliations:
University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, USA;University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, USA;University of Wisconsin at Madison, Madison, USA
Venue:
Proceedings of the 45th ACM technical symposium on Computer science education
Year:
2014

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Abstract

This paper discusses two case studies of students observed in an introductory computer science (CS1) course. Observations reinforce notions of the potential benefits of culturally and personally relevant instruction in the computer science (CS) classroom and call into question the stigmatization of 'nerd' culture within the literature of CS education. As this study is qualitative and exploratory in nature, it does not provide definitive, statistically generalizable findings -- however, it does unearth nuanced and potentially beneficial pathways of investigation for CS educators and researchers that many quantitative methods might miss. Specifically, observations highlight potential benefits of supporting students' perceptions of more diverse CS identities including broader understandings of the "CS nerd" identity.