Cultivating Radical Imagination: An Approach to Disrupting Antiblackness in Computer Science Education

Abstract

Leveraging Black Critical Theory, this paper critiques the manifestation and impact of antiblackness in computing education, arguing it stifles Black youth's creativity and agency. Developed in the context of an out-of-school space for Black youth, we propose a framework for learning environments that cultivates radical imagination and centers joy, empowerment, and liberatory fantasy. This framework aims to disrupt dominant narratives through technology-mediated creative learning experiences for Black youth. Drawn from design-based critical inquiry experiences within a community-based afterschool program explicitly focused on transformative justice for Black youth, core values and actionable principles will provide insight for educators, designers, and researchers supporting those furthest from educational justice.