(Un)Designing "Darkness" in Computing Education

• In Event: 63.021 - Computational and Engineering Abilities in Higher Education and Adult Learners

Abstract

The values that are interweaved into computing systems are increasingly ubiquitous and important to consider. While ethics training has existed in computing education for decades, current practices do not frequently address the kinds of ethical challenges that design and computing professionals will face in their practice. In this study, we identify instances of value manipulation among computing design students as they address common design challenges. Data include eight one-hour design protocol sessions completed by three designers in each protocol. Our analysis demonstrates how values are taken up and explicitly manipulated by design students, even given previous experiences in ethics and values in the curriculum. Implications for the design of computing curricula and the developing design character of students are considered.

Authors

• Colin M. Gray, Purdue University

• Shruthi Sai Chivukula, Purdue University