Sense of Community, Social Connections, and Collaborative Learning in Post-Secondary Computer-Science Education
Creators: Alajmy, Alaa
Publisher: name: University of Alberta Library
Year: 2024

<p>In post-secondary education, sense of community supports student motivation, persistence, and well-being. However, students from underrepresented groups often have a lower sense of community than their peers. This issue is especially pronounced in the field of computer science, which, despite its rapid growth, still lacks balanced representation. Research has shown that computer science students experience a low sense of community in their departments and in their courses. This thesis explores the sense of community of computer science students from different demographic groups and in different years of their programs. We focus on two factors that influence sense of community: students’ social connections and the use of collaborative learning in their courses. The thesis is composed of two studies. <br>
The first study gathered data directly from undergraduate computer science students. We employed null hypothesis significance testing to investigate the sense of community and social connections of computer science students. We then used linear regression to determine how sense of community is affected by students’ connections within their courses and by their supportive external connections. Finally, we used null hypothesis testing to determine how students’ sense of community and the numbers of social connections they have differ across courses with different collaborative learning requirements. Our analysis indicated that students from underrepresented genders and students from underrepresented ethnic groups had a lower sense of community than majority students and that students from underrepresented genders had more external supportive connections than men. Similarly, students in the earlier years of their program had more external connections than students in later years. Connections with other students were a positive predictor of sense of community while external connections were a negative predictor. We did not find significant differences in sense of community across courses </p>

<p>with varying collaborative learning requirements for most demographic groups. However, our analysis showed that men, domestic students, and students in their fourth year had more connections with their peers in courses with a collaborative learning component than in courses without such a component. <br>
The second study used archival registration data of undergraduate computer science students and null hypothesis tests to investigate differences in students’ course grades across courses with varying collaborative learning requirements. While domestic students performed better in courses that required collaboration than in courses that did not include collaborative learning, international students did not. <br>
The findings of this thesis indicate that students in the first and second years of their programs require more opportunities to connect with their peers and to develop a sense of community in their courses. Moreover, the findings suggest that collaborative learning approaches employed in computer science need to be further developed to better support the academic achievement of international students. The findings of this thesis could be used to develop interventions to support the sense of community of computer science students from different demographic groups and in different years of their programs. However, as this study was conducted within a single computer science department at a single university, it is important to consider contextual differences when interpreting and applying these findings to other settings.</p>