Authenticity in K-12 Computer Science | Caryn Thiên Ngân Tran

This line of work examines how authenticity is experienced in high school CS classrooms, what makes block-based programming feel legitimate or not, and how those perceptions influence engagement and learning. It is part of my PhD work at Northwestern with Professor Eleanor O’Rourke and the Delta Lab.

CHI Paper

🏆 Best Paper 🏆 Starting From Scratch Again and Again: Tracing the Origins of High Schoolers’ Negative Perceptions of Block-Based Programming

Caryn Tran, Kristin Fasiang^*, Max Kanwal^*, and Eleanor O’Rourke

In Proceedings of the 2026 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, Apr 2026

Bib

Best Paper Award

@inproceedings{tran2026starting,
  project = {authentic_learning},
  publication_sort = {2026-04},
  title = {Starting From Scratch Again and Again: Tracing the Origins of High Schoolers' Negative Perceptions of Block-Based Programming},
  author = {Tran, Caryn and Fasiang, Kristin and Kanwal, Max and O'Rourke, Eleanor},
  booktitle = {Proceedings of the 2026 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems},
  pages = {1--17},
  doi = {10.1145/3772318.3791825},
  year = {2026},
  month = apr,
}

ICER Paper Exploring Student-Perceived Dimensions of Authenticity in High School Computer Science

Exploring Student-Perceived Dimensions of Authenticity in High School Computer Science

Caryn Tran, Max Kanwal, Kristin Fasiang, and Eleanor O’Rourke

In Proceedings of the 2025 ACM Conference on International Computing Education Research V. 1, Aug 2025

Bib

@inproceedings{tran2025exploring,
  project = {authentic_learning},
  publication_sort = {2025-02},
  title = {Exploring Student-Perceived Dimensions of Authenticity in High School Computer Science},
  author = {Tran, Caryn and Kanwal, Max and Fasiang, Kristin and O'Rourke, Eleanor},
  booktitle = {Proceedings of the 2025 ACM Conference on International Computing Education Research V. 1},
  pages = {93--108},
  doi = {10.1145/3702652.3744229},
  year = {2025},
  month = aug,
}

ICER Poster Understanding Novices’ Perceptions of “Authentic” Programming

Understanding Novices’ Perceptions of “Authentic” Programming

Caryn Tran and Eleanor O’Rourke

In Proceedings of the 2023 ACM Conference on International Computing Education Research-Volume 2, Aug 2023

Bib

@inproceedings{tran2023understanding,
  project = {authentic_learning},
  publication_sort = {2023-01},
  title = {Understanding Novices’ Perceptions of “Authentic” Programming},
  author = {Tran, Caryn and O'Rourke, Eleanor},
  booktitle = {Proceedings of the 2023 ACM Conference on International Computing Education Research-Volume 2},
  pages = {37--38},
  doi = {10.1145/3568812.3603492},
  year = {2023},
  month = aug,
  preview_thumbnail = {icer2023_thumb.png}
}

Lambert Poster Investigating the Negative Perceptions of Blocks-Based Programming

Investigating the Negative Perceptions of Blocks-Based Programming

Caryn Tran, Kristin Fasiang, and Eleanor O’Rourke

In Lambert Conference on the Future of Human-Computer Interaction + Design, Northwestern University, Oct 2022

Bib

@inproceedings{tran2022blocksbased,
  project = {authentic_learning},
  publication_sort = {2022-01},
  title = {Investigating the Negative Perceptions of Blocks-Based Programming},
  author = {Tran, Caryn and Fasiang, Kristin and O'Rourke, Eleanor},
  booktitle = {Lambert Conference on the Future of Human-Computer Interaction + Design},
  location = {Northwestern University},
  month = oct,
  year = {2022},
  preview_thumbnail = {lambert2022_bottom_thumb.png}
}