Digital Literacy and Coding Programs

Rockman et al Cooperative has conducted several evaluations for initiatives designed to improve digital access, fluency with digital technology, and coding skills. Through investigating the implementation and impact of digital literacy and coding programs in pk-12 schools, after-school programs and technical education programs, we have developed a strong understanding of processes involved in teaching and learning computational thinking.

Please explore selected examples of our work with digital literacy and coding programs below. We welcome the opportunity to discuss your project with you and to provide you with more information about our tailored services. Please Contact Us to schedule a free 30-minute Q&A session with a consultant.

Selected Projects Include

  • Photo courtesy of AfroTech.

    Black Girls Code

    Black Girls Code (BGC) is an out-of-school program designed to provide girls of color opportunities to learn in-demand skills in technology and computer programming during a time when they are considering career paths. The goal of this program is twofold: To introduce programming and technology to a new generation of coders and to sustain this interest well into high school and college. Since 2012, REA has examined the impact of BGC’s Culturally-Relevant STEM programming that embraces the intersectionality of its students (culture, race/ethnicity/gender), sense of belonging for girls of color, short and long-term program impact, and career inspirations and pathways. We have utilized case study design, focus groups, interviews, and surveys to measure BGC’s impact.

    Report: Black Girls Code Final Report
  • Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash

    Common Sense Media Educator Census

    Together with Common Sense Media and Veraquest Inc., REA developed and conducted a survey of U.S. teachers’ technology use in schools. The Educator Census Survey provided an update on the use and perceived impacts of various classroom technologies, understandings about digital citizenship curricula use, an overview of technology-related policies in schools, and insights into issues of access to educational technology within and outside classrooms. Among the most notable survey findings was that there was a misalignment between the digital tools that teachers used most frequently and the digital tools teachers perceived to be most effective for students.

    Report: Common Sense Media Educator Report
  • Photo by Robo Wunderkind on Unsplash

    Google Made with Code

    Google’s Made with Code initiative aimed to inspire, activate, and sustain girls’ interest in using code. Google partnered with REA to evaluate the impact of Made with Code on underrepresented teen girls’ interest in coding and their expectations to pursue coding. We conducted sixteen quasi-experimental focus groups in four major metropolitan areas around the US with 115 teen girl participants. The quasi-experimental design tested the impact of the two formats of delivering the website to STEM-oriented and non-STEM-oriented teen girls.

  • Photo by Robo Wunderkind on Unsplash

    Scratch Jr.

    Developed with funding from the Verizon Foundation, the PBS KIDS Code-to-Learn Camp was a summer program designed to teach 5-8 year old participants basic programming and computational thinking skills. PBS KIDS’ goal was to challenge and inspire young children, particularly those most in-need, to develop problem-solving and creativity skills through the use of technology. Using the PBS Scratch Jr. app and PBS’s Code-to-Learn curriculum, children learned how to use basic coding principles to build their own animated stories. REA created a novel assessment that captured young children’s growth in computational thinking skills and changes in confidence and attitudes towards programming. In addition, we conducted the formative evaluation of both the youth summer camp and the professional development workshops for educators.

  • Photo courtesy of joaquin uy via CC licensing.

    YR Media

    Since 2006, REA has served as the independent evaluator on YR Media’s education initiatives to engage under-represented youth in informal STEM learning through interest-driven inquiry that combines journalism, design, data, and code. Building on YR Media and MIT App Inventor’s longstanding collaboration to democratize youth media production, the Innovative Approaches to Informal Education in Artificial Intelligence project, funded by NSF-AISL, aims to improve public understanding of artificial intelligence (AI) among young creators and their audiences through youth-led journalism about AI, digital media powered by AI, and open educational resources about how AI works and its role in society. REA conducted the project’s independent evaluation, which included project team interviews, participant observations, focus groups with youth producers, online youth surveys, and audience testing to capture outcomes and lessons learned about effectively engaging youth in learning about AI.

    Report: Youth Radio Innovation Lab Final Evaluation Report