Korean Immigrant Children’s Programming Experiences with ScratchJr: Ideological Becoming Through Digital Storytelling

• In Event: Cultural Responsiveness and Inclusivity in Technology-Oriented STEM Education for Young Children and Teachers

Abstract

This study examines how young children from Korean immigrant families engage with ScratchJr—an introductory visual programming language—and perceive their programming experiences. Based on Bakhtin’s (1981) perspectives, the study considered young children’s programming experiences heteroglossic utterances, where children navigate various discourses to develop their viewpoints and identities. In particular, Bakhtin’s notion of “ideological becoming” (p. 342) helped analyze how children navigate conflicting voices through their programming.
Data for this paper are from a larger design-based research (DBR) study conducted with nine children (ages 4-6) from Korean immigrant families at a Korean church and a public library in the Southeastern United States. The DBR study was to develop, implement, and evaluate digital storytelling workshops based on culturally responsive computing principles (Scott et al., 2015). As the designer and researcher of these workshops, I generated 40 hours of video recordings, artifacts composed of the children’s work samples, and post-workshop interview data with the children.
Findings suggested that the children negotiated authoritative discourses while expressing their unique perspectives through their engagement with ScratchJr. For example, Suho (pseudonym), a five-year-old boy, engaged in remixing (Irvine, 2014) to address competing authoritative discourses on language practices and showcased his translingual repertoire. Specifically, on the first page of his digital story, a Japan character says, “Dokdo is our 땅 [land]! Hahahaha!” This dialogue, a mix of English and Korean in one sentence, can be called “broken English/Korean” because Suho failed to make a complete sentence in either English or Korean. From the perspective of the authoritative discourses at his home (speaking only Korean), school (using only English), and Korean heritage language school (learning Korean), mixing languages should be avoided, even though this mix of multiple languages happens every day, especially for children from translingual communities (Song, 2016).
In the post-workshop interview, Suho described, “ScrachJr [ScratchJr] is something we cood [code], draw, and you can make silly things.” Suho’s remark shows that he perceived programming at the digital storytelling workshops as an experience of channeling his voice. To Suho, programming with ScratchJr was an opportunity to create “silly things,” allowing him to experiment with what was possible and express his voice, even though authoritative discourses could regard his expressions as “silly.” Analyzed through a Bakhtinian perspective, Suho’s description of “silly things” can be considered a tactics for his resistance against authoritative discourses (Tobin, 2005). Thus, programming with ScratchJr allows Suho to tactfully challenge authoritative language practices by adding humor and playfulness.
This study provides a nuanced understanding of how young children from immigrant families engage with and perceive programming experiences. By listening to children’s voices, the study highlights the importance of understanding their meanings of programming and technology use. Children’s perspectives can challenge and expand adult assumptions about early childhood computer science education, including why we teach programming to young children. Rather than focusing solely on technical skills and future job preparedness, this study shows that programming education can offer opportunities for children to explore identities, empower their voices, and challenge social norms.

Author

• Hyeungok Kang, California State University - San Bernardino