Youth Experience, Learning, and Digital Practices

Creating new avenues for youth learning, communication, play, and self-expression.

Research Projects

Collaborative Research: Harmonizing Scratch Encore: Empowering Educators to Create Customized Culturally-Responsive Computing Materials
Principal Investigator(s): David Weintrop
Funder: National Science Foundation
Research Areas: Youth Experience, Learning, and Digital Practices
This project explores ways to support middle school computer science teachers in drawing on their students' cultural resources and prior knowledge to situate introductory computer science learning experiences.
Maryland Sports Data Analytics Camps for Youth
Principal Investigator(s): Tamara Clegg
Funder: National Science Foundation
Research Areas: Accessibility and Inclusive Design > Data Science, Analytics, and Visualization > Youth Experience, Learning, and Digital Practices
Advancing knowledge of informal learning experiences that build adolescents' motivation for participation in STEM courses and careers, with a specific focus on introducing middle school African American and Latinx youth to the world of sports data analytics through events and summer camps.

Recent News

People learning using virtual reality headsets.

Photo by Lucrezia Carnelos on Unsplash

How Emerging Technologies are Crafting New Worlds and Revolutionizing Learning

Research with KidsTeam and local neighborhoods examines how youth use emerging technologies like AI and VR
Photo of Testudo statue on the UMD Campus with sunshine

Units Across UMD Partner on Multidisciplinary Initiatives for AI Ethics, Accessible Technology, and Literacy

Funded by UMD Grand Challenge Grants, INFO is playing an integral role in these initiatives
Screenshot of Jen Golbeck on MSNBC's 11th Hour program

NBC’s 11th Hour: Surgeon General Warns About Teens on Social Media (ft. Jen Golbeck)

Professor Jen Golbeck joins a panel of guests on the 11th Hour to address social media’s influence on young people's mental health.