Epistemic Network Analysis of an International Digital Makerspace in Africa, Europe, and the United States

• In Event: Hilton Roundtable 22
  In Roundtable Session: International Research on Maths and STEM

Abstract

A digital makerspace community of fifteen clubs in Kenya, Finland, Namibia, and the United States involves participants, ages 10-19, who create videos and other digital artifacts to teach their peers science and mathematics. Each artifact represents a collaboration of participants from different countries. This paper reports on research on participants’ socio-affective and academic development as they collaborate across cultural, economic, and international boundaries. Epistemic network analysis (ENA) is used to depict important malleable variables – and the relationships between those variables - such as self-efficacy, personal identity, confidence, awareness of others, and self-awareness. Our study demonstrates the efficacy of ENA to model and understand the salient aspects of international collaboration in digital maker spaces.

Authors

• Brendan R. Eagan, University of Wisconsin - Madison

• Eric R. Hamilton, Pepperdine University