{"id":{"repo_id":"uic","oai_identifier":"oai:figshare.com:article/32995160"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/uic/oai:figshare.com:article/32995160","repository":{"repo_id":"uic","name":"University of Illinois - Chicago","base_url":"https://api.figshare.com/v2/oai"},"display":{"title":"Broadening Participation of Girls in Computing: An Integrated Approach to Supporting Interest in CS","abstract":"Broadening participation of girls in Computer Science (CS) has been a longstanding concern of researchers and educators over the past few decades. Computing education programs aimed at broadening participation among girls may benefit from intentionally designing learning environments informed by domain-specific theoretical models of interest development in CS. Prior research suggests that supporting interest involves multiple interacting factors; therefore, using an integrated approach may be more effective than treating each factor in isolation. Additionally, these multifaceted supports may help counter persistent stereotypes in CS that impact girls’ participation in the domain. However, computing programs often address these factors independently or without explicitly grounding program design in theory. In response to these needs, I developed a social robotics curriculum, referred to as MyTurn, utilizing the Developing Interest in Computing Education (DICE) theoretical framework. The MyTurn curriculum takes an integrated approach to fostering girls’ interest in CS by supporting knowledge, value, and a sense of belonging. These supports are implemented through a coordinated system of distributed scaffolding that includes both material and social scaffolds. Specifically, the curriculum includes: (1) a pre-coding scaffolding tool designed to engage students with computational thinking (CT) and CS concepts through structured planning and reflection; (2) value-oriented social robotics prompts that highlight the relevance and social impact of CS; and (3) structured opportunities for rich peer and mentor interactions to cultivate a sense of belonging in CS. Together, these elements provide complementary pathways for supporting interest development while also addressing stereotypes about CS as isolating, individualistic, or lacking relevance. This dissertation begins with an overview of literature on interest development in CS, stereotypes in CS, and the use of distributed scaffolding in computing education. Next, it presents my approach to promoting participation among girls through a series of three sequential studies that use multiple methods of analysis. Study 1 is an in-depth systematic literature review of CS programs designed for pre-college girls to examine how the computing education community has conceptualized, designed, and measured efforts to broaden participation in recent years. This study identifies key patterns and gaps, including tensions between conceptual framing and operationalization. Study 2 is a field study examining the experiences of two cohorts of middle school girls as they engaged in the MyTurn social robotics camp. This study provides insight into how students interact with and respond to integrated scaffolding supports in practice, including differences across cohorts. Study 3 reports on findings from a quasi-experimental study of the redesigned MyTurn classroom curriculum, examining the influence of the pre-coding CT scaffolding tool on students’ engagement with CT and CS concepts, sense of belonging, and perceptions of CS. Finally, I provide a synthesis across the three studies, highlighting key findings related to the design and implementation of integrated interest supports in computing education. This work contributes to both theory and practice by demonstrating how coordinated material and social scaffolds can support multiple dimensions of interest simultaneously and address prevalent stereotypes in CS for broadening participation among girls. The findings from this dissertation work may also inform efforts aimed at promoting participation of other underrepresented populations in CS.","abstract_html":"Broadening participation of girls in Computer Science (CS) has been a longstanding concern of researchers and educators over the past few decades. Computing education programs aimed at broadening participation among girls may benefit from intentionally designing learning environments informed by domain-specific theoretical models of interest development in CS. Prior research suggests that supporting interest involves multiple interacting factors; therefore, using an integrated approach may be more effective than treating each factor in isolation. Additionally, these multifaceted supports may help counter persistent stereotypes in CS that impact girls’ participation in the domain. However, computing programs often address these factors independently or without explicitly grounding program design in theory. In response to these needs, I developed a social robotics curriculum, referred to as MyTurn, utilizing the Developing Interest in Computing Education (DICE) theoretical framework. The MyTurn curriculum takes an integrated approach to fostering girls’ interest in CS by supporting knowledge, value, and a sense of belonging. These supports are implemented through a coordinated system of distributed scaffolding that includes both material and social scaffolds. Specifically, the curriculum includes: (1) a pre-coding scaffolding tool designed to engage students with computational thinking (CT) and CS concepts through structured planning and reflection; (2) value-oriented social robotics prompts that highlight the relevance and social impact of CS; and (3) structured opportunities for rich peer and mentor interactions to cultivate a sense of belonging in CS. Together, these elements provide complementary pathways for supporting interest development while also addressing stereotypes about CS as isolating, individualistic, or lacking relevance. This dissertation begins with an overview of literature on interest development in CS, stereotypes in CS, and the use of distributed scaffolding in computing education. Next, it presents my approach to promoting participation among girls through a series of three sequential studies that use multiple methods of analysis. Study 1 is an in-depth systematic literature review of CS programs designed for pre-college girls to examine how the computing education community has conceptualized, designed, and measured efforts to broaden participation in recent years. This study identifies key patterns and gaps, including tensions between conceptual framing and operationalization. Study 2 is a field study examining the experiences of two cohorts of middle school girls as they engaged in the MyTurn social robotics camp. This study provides insight into how students interact with and respond to integrated scaffolding supports in practice, including differences across cohorts. Study 3 reports on findings from a quasi-experimental study of the redesigned MyTurn classroom curriculum, examining the influence of the pre-coding CT scaffolding tool on students’ engagement with CT and CS concepts, sense of belonging, and perceptions of CS. Finally, I provide a synthesis across the three studies, highlighting key findings related to the design and implementation of integrated interest supports in computing education. This work contributes to both theory and practice by demonstrating how coordinated material and social scaffolds can support multiple dimensions of interest simultaneously and address prevalent stereotypes in CS for broadening participation among girls. The findings from this dissertation work may also inform efforts aimed at promoting participation of other underrepresented populations in CS.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Rabia Ibtasar (24400106)"],"institution":null,"degree_name":null,"degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2026,"date_issued":"2026-05-01T00:00:00Z","date_published":"2026-05-01T00:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-27T21:33:50Z","subjects":["Computer Science","Learning Sciences","Computer Science Education"],"languages":[],"rights":["In Copyright","Open Access after 2028-05-01"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://doi.org/10.25417/uic.32995160.v1","outbound_label":"DOI","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Rabia Ibtasar (24400106)"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2026-05-01T00:00:00Z"]},{"key":"dc:relation","label":"Dc Relation","values":["https://figshare.com/articles/thesis/Broadening_Participation_of_Girls_in_Computing_An_Integrated_Approach_to_Supporting_Interest_in_CS/32995160"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Text","Thesis"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Computer Science","Learning Sciences","Computer Science Education"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["In Copyright","Open Access after 2028-05-01"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["10.25417/uic.32995160.v1"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["Broadening participation of girls in Computer Science (CS) has been a longstanding concern of researchers and educators over the past few decades. Computing education programs aimed at broadening participation among girls may benefit from intentionally designing learning environments informed by domain-specific theoretical models of interest development in CS. Prior research suggests that supporting interest involves multiple interacting factors; therefore, using an integrated approach may be more effective than treating each factor in isolation. Additionally, these multifaceted supports may help counter persistent stereotypes in CS that impact girls’ participation in the domain. However, computing programs often address these factors independently or without explicitly grounding program design in theory. In response to these needs, I developed a social robotics curriculum, referred to as MyTurn, utilizing the Developing Interest in Computing Education (DICE) theoretical framework. The MyTurn curriculum takes an integrated approach to fostering girls’ interest in CS by supporting knowledge, value, and a sense of belonging. These supports are implemented through a coordinated system of distributed scaffolding that includes both material and social scaffolds. Specifically, the curriculum includes: (1) a pre-coding scaffolding tool designed to engage students with computational thinking (CT) and CS concepts through structured planning and reflection; (2) value-oriented social robotics prompts that highlight the relevance and social impact of CS; and (3) structured opportunities for rich peer and mentor interactions to cultivate a sense of belonging in CS. Together, these elements provide complementary pathways for supporting interest development while also addressing stereotypes about CS as isolating, individualistic, or lacking relevance. This dissertation begins with an overview of literature on interest development in CS, stereotypes in CS, and the use of distributed scaffolding in computing education. Next, it presents my approach to promoting participation among girls through a series of three sequential studies that use multiple methods of analysis. Study 1 is an in-depth systematic literature review of CS programs designed for pre-college girls to examine how the computing education community has conceptualized, designed, and measured efforts to broaden participation in recent years. This study identifies key patterns and gaps, including tensions between conceptual framing and operationalization. Study 2 is a field study examining the experiences of two cohorts of middle school girls as they engaged in the MyTurn social robotics camp. This study provides insight into how students interact with and respond to integrated scaffolding supports in practice, including differences across cohorts. Study 3 reports on findings from a quasi-experimental study of the redesigned MyTurn classroom curriculum, examining the influence of the pre-coding CT scaffolding tool on students’ engagement with CT and CS concepts, sense of belonging, and perceptions of CS. Finally, I provide a synthesis across the three studies, highlighting key findings related to the design and implementation of integrated interest supports in computing education. This work contributes to both theory and practice by demonstrating how coordinated material and social scaffolds can support multiple dimensions of interest simultaneously and address prevalent stereotypes in CS for broadening participation among girls. The findings from this dissertation work may also inform efforts aimed at promoting participation of other underrepresented populations in CS."]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Broadening Participation of Girls in Computing: An Integrated Approach to Supporting Interest in CS"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Rabia Ibtasar (24400106)"],"dc:date":["2026-05-01T00:00:00Z"],"dc:description":["Broadening participation of girls in Computer Science (CS) has been a longstanding concern of researchers and educators over the past few decades. Computing education programs aimed at broadening participation among girls may benefit from intentionally designing learning environments informed by domain-specific theoretical models of interest development in CS. Prior research suggests that supporting interest involves multiple interacting factors; therefore, using an integrated approach may be more effective than treating each factor in isolation. Additionally, these multifaceted supports may help counter persistent stereotypes in CS that impact girls’ participation in the domain. However, computing programs often address these factors independently or without explicitly grounding program design in theory. In response to these needs, I developed a social robotics curriculum, referred to as MyTurn, utilizing the Developing Interest in Computing Education (DICE) theoretical framework. The MyTurn curriculum takes an integrated approach to fostering girls’ interest in CS by supporting knowledge, value, and a sense of belonging. These supports are implemented through a coordinated system of distributed scaffolding that includes both material and social scaffolds. Specifically, the curriculum includes: (1) a pre-coding scaffolding tool designed to engage students with computational thinking (CT) and CS concepts through structured planning and reflection; (2) value-oriented social robotics prompts that highlight the relevance and social impact of CS; and (3) structured opportunities for rich peer and mentor interactions to cultivate a sense of belonging in CS. Together, these elements provide complementary pathways for supporting interest development while also addressing stereotypes about CS as isolating, individualistic, or lacking relevance. This dissertation begins with an overview of literature on interest development in CS, stereotypes in CS, and the use of distributed scaffolding in computing education. Next, it presents my approach to promoting participation among girls through a series of three sequential studies that use multiple methods of analysis. Study 1 is an in-depth systematic literature review of CS programs designed for pre-college girls to examine how the computing education community has conceptualized, designed, and measured efforts to broaden participation in recent years. This study identifies key patterns and gaps, including tensions between conceptual framing and operationalization. Study 2 is a field study examining the experiences of two cohorts of middle school girls as they engaged in the MyTurn social robotics camp. This study provides insight into how students interact with and respond to integrated scaffolding supports in practice, including differences across cohorts. Study 3 reports on findings from a quasi-experimental study of the redesigned MyTurn classroom curriculum, examining the influence of the pre-coding CT scaffolding tool on students’ engagement with CT and CS concepts, sense of belonging, and perceptions of CS. Finally, I provide a synthesis across the three studies, highlighting key findings related to the design and implementation of integrated interest supports in computing education. This work contributes to both theory and practice by demonstrating how coordinated material and social scaffolds can support multiple dimensions of interest simultaneously and address prevalent stereotypes in CS for broadening participation among girls. The findings from this dissertation work may also inform efforts aimed at promoting participation of other underrepresented populations in CS."],"dc:identifier":["10.25417/uic.32995160.v1"],"dc:relation":["https://figshare.com/articles/thesis/Broadening_Participation_of_Girls_in_Computing_An_Integrated_Approach_to_Supporting_Interest_in_CS/32995160"],"dc:rights":["In Copyright","Open Access after 2028-05-01"],"dc:subject":["Computer Science","Learning Sciences","Computer Science Education"],"dc:title":["Broadening Participation of Girls in Computing: An Integrated Approach to Supporting Interest in CS"],"dc:type":["Text","Thesis"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-27T21:33:50Z"}