From Classroom to Community: Evaluating Data Science Practices in Education and Social Justice Projects
Critical data literacy (CDL) has emerged as a crucial component in data science education, transcending traditional disciplinary boundaries. Promoting CDL requires collaborative approaches to enhance learners’ skills in data science, going beyond mere quantitative reasoning to encompass a comprehens...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-07-01
|
| Series: | Education Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7102/15/7/878 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849246319348023296 |
|---|---|
| author | Marc T. Sager Jeanna R. Wieselmann Anthony J. Petrosino |
| author_facet | Marc T. Sager Jeanna R. Wieselmann Anthony J. Petrosino |
| author_sort | Marc T. Sager |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Critical data literacy (CDL) has emerged as a crucial component in data science education, transcending traditional disciplinary boundaries. Promoting CDL requires collaborative approaches to enhance learners’ skills in data science, going beyond mere quantitative reasoning to encompass a comprehensive understanding of data workflows and tools. Despite the growing literature on CDL, there is still a need to explore how students use data science practices for supporting the learning of CDL throughout a summer-long data science program. Drawing on situative perspectives of learning, we utilize a descriptive case study to address our research question: How do data science practices taught in a classroom setting differ from those enacted in real-world social justice projects? Key findings reveal that while the course focused on abstract principles and basic technical skills, the Food Justice Project provided students with a more applied understanding of data tools, ethics, and exploration. Through the project, students demonstrated a deeper engagement with CDL, addressing real-world issues through detailed data analysis and ethical considerations. This manuscript adds to the literature within data science education and has the potential to bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical application, preparing students to address real-world data science challenges through their coursework. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-5e69afc919f94d4ea4ee0b2dfcce794a |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2227-7102 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Education Sciences |
| spelling | doaj-art-5e69afc919f94d4ea4ee0b2dfcce794a2025-08-20T03:58:31ZengMDPI AGEducation Sciences2227-71022025-07-0115787810.3390/educsci15070878From Classroom to Community: Evaluating Data Science Practices in Education and Social Justice ProjectsMarc T. Sager0Jeanna R. Wieselmann1Anthony J. Petrosino2The Budd Center, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX 75275-0509, USADepartment of Teaching and Learning, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX 75275-0455, USADepartment of Teaching and Learning, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX 75275-0455, USACritical data literacy (CDL) has emerged as a crucial component in data science education, transcending traditional disciplinary boundaries. Promoting CDL requires collaborative approaches to enhance learners’ skills in data science, going beyond mere quantitative reasoning to encompass a comprehensive understanding of data workflows and tools. Despite the growing literature on CDL, there is still a need to explore how students use data science practices for supporting the learning of CDL throughout a summer-long data science program. Drawing on situative perspectives of learning, we utilize a descriptive case study to address our research question: How do data science practices taught in a classroom setting differ from those enacted in real-world social justice projects? Key findings reveal that while the course focused on abstract principles and basic technical skills, the Food Justice Project provided students with a more applied understanding of data tools, ethics, and exploration. Through the project, students demonstrated a deeper engagement with CDL, addressing real-world issues through detailed data analysis and ethical considerations. This manuscript adds to the literature within data science education and has the potential to bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical application, preparing students to address real-world data science challenges through their coursework.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7102/15/7/878data science educationdata science practicescritical data literacyfood justicesituated learninghigher education |
| spellingShingle | Marc T. Sager Jeanna R. Wieselmann Anthony J. Petrosino From Classroom to Community: Evaluating Data Science Practices in Education and Social Justice Projects Education Sciences data science education data science practices critical data literacy food justice situated learning higher education |
| title | From Classroom to Community: Evaluating Data Science Practices in Education and Social Justice Projects |
| title_full | From Classroom to Community: Evaluating Data Science Practices in Education and Social Justice Projects |
| title_fullStr | From Classroom to Community: Evaluating Data Science Practices in Education and Social Justice Projects |
| title_full_unstemmed | From Classroom to Community: Evaluating Data Science Practices in Education and Social Justice Projects |
| title_short | From Classroom to Community: Evaluating Data Science Practices in Education and Social Justice Projects |
| title_sort | from classroom to community evaluating data science practices in education and social justice projects |
| topic | data science education data science practices critical data literacy food justice situated learning higher education |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7102/15/7/878 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT marctsager fromclassroomtocommunityevaluatingdatasciencepracticesineducationandsocialjusticeprojects AT jeannarwieselmann fromclassroomtocommunityevaluatingdatasciencepracticesineducationandsocialjusticeprojects AT anthonyjpetrosino fromclassroomtocommunityevaluatingdatasciencepracticesineducationandsocialjusticeprojects |