Exploring equity and self-directed learning in computing undergraduates : a capability analysis from the global south

Abstract

Computer Science Education (CSE) concerns the reflection of equitable variables like gender, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status and culture. However, addressing how to balance different sources of inequities is still an open challenge. Although ‘Capacity for’, ‘Access to’, ‘Participation in’, and ‘Experience of’ (CAPE) framework can map most of the main variables to an equity analysis, the concept of capacity is strongly related to resources, ignoring some

essential aspects relative to the real opportunities for a computing student. Another frame- work that can address this problem is the Capabilities Approach (CA), having the freedom of

being educated is one of the aims of this perspective. In this direction, active learning and Self-Directed Learning (SDL) can potentialize the freedom of CSE students, promoting more autonomy and crucial soft skills in our complex society. SDL is a potential equitable practice, but there are open challenges to consider regarding when and how to use it. Understanding better how SDL effectively occurs in CSE students can also contribute to comprehending the

potentiality of active learning in terms of capabilities. Thus, this doctoral research investi- gated how do CSE students conduct their SDL in developing countries from the CA lens.

Three Research Goals (RGs) help to address this question in a qualitative approach: (RG1) understanding how CSE students build their SDL trajectories in developing countries; (RG2)

mapping the main elements of SDL capabilities observed in CSE students in developing coun- tries; and (RG3) recommending guidelines to (CSE) educational stakeholders concerning how

to consider effectively equity issues and active learning from the CA lens. The results are

structured over the perceptions of two CSE Brazilian undergraduates about their SDL trajec- tories, being each one from the lowest and highest Socioeconomic Status (SES) of their class,

respectively. Interviews and other data sources helped to better situate the findings. The doc- toral contributions were in (i) the use of CA as an equity theoretical framework in computing

research, and Computing Education (CEd), (ii) the proposition of a new concept called SDL capabilities, and (iii) a pragmatic instantiation of equity discussions in CSE (beyond other scientific contributions to Computing and Education).