Scratch: A Sneak Preview

information technologies as “the ability to reformulate knowledge, to express oneself creatively and appropriately, and to produce and generate information (rather than simply to comprehend it).” Fluency, according to the report, “goes beyond traditional notions of computer literacy...[It] requires a deeper, more essential understanding and mastery of information technology for information processing, communication, and problem solving than does computer literacy as traditionally defined.” Scratch is a networked, media-rich programming environment designed to enhance the development of technological fluency at after-school centers in economically-disadvantaged communities. Just as the LEGO MindStorms robotics kit added programmability to an activity deeply rooted in youth culture (building with LEGO bricks), Scratch adds programmability to the media-rich and network-based activities that are most popular among youth at afterschool computer centers. Taking advantage of the extraordinary processing power of current computers, Scratch supports new programming paradigms and activities that were previously infeasible, making it better positioned to succeed than previous attempts to introduce programming to youth. In the past, most initiatives to improve technological fluency have focused on school classrooms. But there is a growing recognition that after-school centers and other informal learning settings can play an important role, especially in economicallydisadvantaged communities, where schools typically have few technological resources and many young people are alienated from the formal education system. Our working hypothesis is that, as kids work on personally meaningful Scratch projects such as animated stories, games, and interactive art, they will develop technological fluency, mathematical and problem solving skills, and a justifiable selfconfidence that will serve them well in the wider spheres of their lives. During the past decade, more than 2000 community technology centers (CTCs) opened in the United States, specifically to provide better access to technology in economically-disadvantaged communities. But most CTCs support only the most basic computer activities such as word processing, email, and Web browsing, so participants do not gain the type of fluency described in the NRC report. Similarly, many after-school centers (which, unlike CTCs, focus exclusively on youth) have begun to introduce computers, but they too tend to offer only introductory computer activities, sometimes augmented by educational games.