The Computer Clubhouse

This book is about the Computer Clubhouse — the idea and the place — that inspires youth to think about themselves as competent, creative, and critical learners. So much of the social life of young people has moved online and participation in the digital public has become an essential part of youth identities. The Computer Clubhouse makes an important contribution not just in local urban communities but also as a model for after-school learning environments globally. This model has been uniquely successful scaling up, with over 100 clubhouses thriving worldwide. Showcasing research by scholars and evaluators that have documented and analyzed the international Computer Clubhouse Network, this volume considers the implications of their findings in the context of what it means to prepare youth to meet the goals of the 21st century.

Book Features:

• A successful, scalable model for providing at-risk youth a rich array of media design and computing experiences.
• Diverse examples of media created in the Clubhouse, ranging from digital stories, video games, interface designs, and digital art projects.
• Color photos of life in the Clubhouse, including youth projects.
• Interviews with stakeholders in the Clubhouse Network, from the director to coordinators at various international Clubhouses.

Yasmin B. Kafai is a professor of learning sciences at the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania. Kylie A. Peppler is an assistant professor of learning sciences at Indiana University, Bloomington. Robbin N. Chapman is a learning technologies consultant.

“It is difficult to conceive of an after-school setting that would have a greater emphasis on positive youth development.”
—Barton J. Hirsch, Northwestern University

“As you will read in this book, the impact of the Computer Clubhouse on underserved youth around the world has been far-reaching, long-lasting, and life-changing.”
—From the Foreword by Rosalind Hudnell, Intel Corporation

“This book is essential reading for anyone concerned with the development and education of contemporary youth, who will be members of a society that places ever-increasing emphasis on the ability to create and use both new digital technologies and the computational infrastructures upon which our economic and social well being increasingly depend. Its lessons go far beyond the Clubhouse.”
—Michael Cole, author of the The Fifth Dimension: An After-School Program Built on Diversity