Engagement in Computer Science and IT -- What! A Matter of Identity?

Abstract

Abstract-In this paper, we develop and illustrate the use of a new theoretical framework to systematically investigate the development of student identity in Computer Science and IT. Identity has been identified as a critical issue in the endeavour to increase students' engagement in Computer Science and related areas. Findings from earlier studies indicate that students' doubts about future engagement are often due to an unfortunate perception of the discipline, that it lacks meaning, which leads to a tendency to dissociate themselves from IT and Computer Science as an area of further study. To understand different ways of experiencing engagement in the discipline as personally meaningful, we have integrated aspects of Lave and Wenger's social theory of learning, especially Wenger's notion of meaning, with a model developed by Entwistle that describes how conceptions of learning and knowledge expand and evolve in the context of the educational experience. We explore the use of this theoretical framework on reflections that we collected from all novice students of the Computer Science and IT engineering programme at Uppsala University, in which the students reflect on their choice of study program, goals, and expectations for education. The theoretical framework is furthermore discussed with respect to our broader research project to study students' identity development in Computer Science and IT as well as the role of education, how it supports or hinders students and how this can be used to inform educational development.

First Year Computer Science and IT Students' Experience of Participation in the Discipline

“…Schulte and Knobelsdorf focus on experiences with the computer, prior to university. Peters and Pears find that students' interests in CS/IT can be broader, about innovation and technology development for society [6]. This conforms with Ulriksen et al's findings in their study of STM affiliated students' perceptions and interests [14].…”

“…3) Now, you have studied CS/IT for one year, can you tell me about how you have experienced your first year here at the university? Follow-up questions were prepared, based on the theoretical framework described by Peters and Pears [6]. However, the follow-up questions emerged relatively naturally based on what the students talked about when answering the opening questions.…”

“…This data was collected as part of a broader research project that aims to understand computer science (CS) and information technology (IT) students' identity development [6].…”

Identity development of CS and IT students

“…Recent research on retention [7] as well as preliminary findings of this project [4,5] indicate that identity is critical in student engagement in CS and IT. This project has two goals: Exploration of how identity development can be investigated, as well as insights into CS and IT students' identity development and negotiation of meaning.…”

Investigation into the personal epistemology of computer science students

“…This interpretation of identity in the field of mathematics is not uncontroversial, but there is even less agreement on what identity means for computer science. The question of what it means to be a computer scientist, and how academia inducts students into a community of practice, is a subject of some debate [25] but it is not unreasonable to suggest that part of it involves "learning to think like a computer scientist". It would be interesting to investigate the degree to which current members of the computer science community share a specific conception of knowledge and a common understanding of "ways of knowing" within the subject, and also how this is passed on to new graduates.…”