Video 2: Recruiting interests
Recruiting interests help students identify the value of the activities and relevance to their lives as well as ensuring they are interested in the material. Be aware that students will have various interests and that these interests can change. In CS education, recruiting interest may include the following strategies:
Strategies for recruiting interest include:
- Plan for student choice to engage learners. Choices can include type of project, project topic, and how they want to display information to show what they know. An example might include choosing between adding features such as scorekeeping and mastery levels when creating a game.
- Create activities relevant to the students’ age, background, and interests to optimize relevance, value, and authenticity.
- Create a safe, non-threatening learning environment. An example would include a distracting sensory environment. Designing a safe and accepting environment with clear class routines which minimizes evaluation that takes place in a public setting as opposed to meeting with the student privately is important for minimizing threats and distractions that may disrupt the learner’s experience.
Choice and support are important values in computer science education because they build interest, confidence,and belonging.
Resources related to this guideline include:
- Recruiting interest location on CAST’s UDL graphic organizer
- CAST: Recruiting Interest
- UDL for Teachers: Recruiting Interest
Note: We use CAST’s (2018) Version 2.2 of the Guidelines. The CAST link is similarly numbered. UDL for Teachers uses a previous version of the guidelines, so numbering and terms may vary.