Designing for Broader Access: Considerations in Providing Opportunities for Students to Create Computational Models

This session explores the kinds of obstacles students encounter when creating computational models and potential approaches for addressing these issues.

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Students have traditionally faced difficulties in creating their own computational models due to steep learning curves associated with programming, difficulties in formulating mathematical equations, and lack of student-centered tools to facilitate the use of data from real-world phenomena to inform model design. Addressing these issues will make it possible to broaden participation by engaging students in computational thinking and modeling at younger ages, and by providing a pathway for students who struggle with mathematical formulas and data/graph literacy to participate. Presenters kick off the discussion by demonstrating SageModeler and the design considerations that were meant to address some of these issues. Using a Zoom meeting to facilitate sharing of screens, others are invited to demonstrate or discuss software, systems, and/or projects that strive to engage students in modeling from a STEM+C perspective, with the goal of identifying challenges, design principles, and solutions. The discussion provides a forum to explore synergies between projects regarding approaches both technological and pedagogical for addressing these issues and the potential generation of new ideas for engaging students in computational modeling.