Translingual Engineering and Robotics: Histories of Unity through the Lens of Dominican-Haitian Communities in the Batey

• In Event: Translenguando en STEM: Conceptualizing Multilingual STEM Education as a Distinct Ontology

Abstract

Objectives. Dominican-Haitian communities have a long history of creating inclusive spaces and connecting people across languages and cultures to solve local problems (Peralta, 2021). Yet, a rise of ultranationalism in the Dominican Republic and recent upheavals in Haiti have led to tensions (Janetsky, 2024; The Economist, 2016). Experiencing villifaction, Dominican-Haitian communities remained united despite existing differences due to shared onto-epistemic resources. This study highlights the cognitive, cultural, and linguistic resources children in Dominican-Haitian communities bring to engineering during socially-oriented problem-solving in their communities.

Theoretical framework. Synthesizing theoretical frameworks of equity and justice in STEM (Calabrese Barton & Tan, 2019; Calabrese Barton et al., 2021a; Costanza-Chock, 2020; Morales‐Doyle, 2017) and translanguaging scholarship (García & Wei, 2014; Otheguy, García & Reid, 2015), we underscore the importance of resources to support thriving and STEM practices in Dominican-Haitian communities. Encouraging the rightful presence of youth and their communities in culturally and linguistically meaningful ways (Calabrese Barton et al., 2021b; Gutiérrez, 2012), this work hyperlocalized the robotics and engineering learning experiences by privileging local resources as the main disciplinary context. We define resources as the physical, symbolic, or sociocultural features of communities that influence learning by channeling behavior (Lahlou, 2018; Author, 2024b).

Data Sources and Methods. Through a mixed methods parallel convergent design (Creswell & Clark, 2017), this study investigates the role of community resources of 60 Dominican-Haitian children in design considerations that generate positive solutions for their people. During a summer program in two Bateyes of the Dominican Republic, they designed and constructed artifacts inspired by the systems of values, languages, and knowledge in their local context. Participants communicated their ideas transgressing boundaries between Dominican Spanish and Haitian creole to peers, family members, community groups, and civic leaders. Data included video recordings of participants, interviews and artifacts. Using grounded theory, data were coded with a two-step iterative process of initial and focus coding followed by theoretical coding and conceptual development (Charmaz, 2017; Saldaña, 2009).

Findings. Students consider racial, environmental, social, technical, and political complexities in thinking and engaging in engineering in their communities. Participants drew on their communicative systems and their transnational experiences to grapple with engineering problems. Through their hybrid languaging, students made nuanced connections between their communities and the discipline. This work highlights important tensions between languaging, racialization and identity in understanding how Dominican-Haitian children in rural communities access cognitive, linguistic and cultural resources when engaging in alternative thinking in engineering design.

Scholarly significance. This research seeks renewal through educational possibilities in engineering learning environments that are driven by the resources of minoritized and racialized groups in Dominican-Haitian communities. Our work stands in opposition to narratives deeming the translingual and cultural practices of these groups as less-than-human and a threat to national identity. Our research remedies and repairs racial injustices in engineering by documenting the brilliance of youth elevating their hybrid systems of knowledge, practices and STEM identities in novel ways to solve local problems. Outcomes offer an expansive view of engineering education as a form of expression and empowerment for students and their communities.

Authors

• Greses Perez, Tufts University

• Mia Jimenez, Tufts University

• Sergio Padilla Regules, Tufts University

• Taisha Pierre, Tufts University

• Luis F. Suarez, Tufts University

• Lise Clara Mabour, Tufts University

• G.R. Marvez, Tufts University

• Ymbar I. Polanco Pino, Tufts University