Charting a path for growth in middle school students’ attitudes toward computer programming

Abstract

ABSTRACT Background and Context Differences in children’s and adolescents’ initial attitudes about computing and other STEM fields may form during middle school and shape decisions leading to career entry. Early emerging differences in career interest may propagate a lack of diversity in computer science and programming fields. Objective Though middle school is recognized as a formative period in the development of career interest, there appears to be a gap in research considering growth disparities in students’ attitudes towards computer programming. We examine outcomes related to students’ use of an e-learning platform designed to promote exposure to computer science content. We consider growth in middle school students’ attitudes towards computer programming during an academic year while controlling for variation in key baseline factors. Method We tracked growth in attitudes towards computer programming among middle school students (N = 610; Mage = 12.07) in schools serving underrepresented minority (URM) students (74.7% URM) during an academic year in which they used an online platform curating computer programming educational content. Findings We found baseline differences in students’ interest and aspirations toward computer programming on the basis of gender and underrepresented status, after controlling for math attitudes. There was evidence of initial growth in all four domains of computer programming attitudes, irrespective of gender or underrepresented status. Implications These findings provide a framework for studying changes in students’ computer programming attitudes, which may help in addressing workforce participation disparities. Future work is needed to promote early computer programming attitudes among all students.