The Developmental Technologies (DevTech) Research Group at the Lynch School of Education and Human Development at Boston College promotes young children’s learning about computational thinking, coding, making and engineering in a playful, developmentally appropriate way. We focus on the design and use of creative technologies for leading more fulfilling lives and for making the world a better place. DevTech is recognized nationally and internationally as a pioneering interdisciplinary research lab with high impact. The group was started by Prof. Marina Umaschi Bers in 2001 at the Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Development at Tufts University. In 2022, Prof. Bers and DevTech moved to a new home to Lynch School of Education at Boston College.
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Theoretical contributions, such as the Positive Technological Development (PTD) framework which enables the design and evaluation of coding playgrounds
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Design of new technologies, such as KIBO and ScratchJr, teaching materials, such as the Coding as Another Language curriculum, and strategies for professional development and community engagement
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Research centered around technologies like ScratchJr (related projects) and KIBO (related projects), to inform sustainable and scalable evidence-based programs for young children and the adults in their lives
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Outreach to scale the impact nationally and internationally, including professional development workshops for educators and learning opportunities for children