Education Philosophy
Introduction
Hack the Hood’s philosophy of education is a justice-centered approach to data science education that emphasizes liberation through socio-political action within the tech sector by individuals, for themselves and the community.
When equipped with data science knowledge and skills, learners are positioned to continue to upskill for long-term career opportunities in the most in-demand job area across industries. Our focus on learners, curriculum, and outcomes are operationalized to represent our values and educational philosophy. To support our students’ long-term success, we partner with small businesses, large corporations, community colleges, and 4-year institutions to enable a broad set of career pathways and possibilities. Through intentionally selected learning examples, use cases, and projects, we position technical skills as a tool for liberation and redress of the socio-political problems that Black, Indigenous, and Latinx communities experience in unique ways. We aim to prepare learners for a wide range of future possibilities where they can determine their path and are equipped to thrive as intersectional technical leaders in the environments they find themselves in.
We affirm that “education is the practice of freedom” (Friere, 2018, p.81) and is achieved through dialogue and the awakening of critical consciousness. The problem posing method of education positions us to help our learners understand and develop technical skills through the experiences that they know best. We focus on socioscientific issues as a context for dialogue, learning, and a practical site for problem solving in the learning process. We also affirm that our learners’ identities, experiences, understandings, and perspectives on the world are unique and valid. When combined with the Hack the Hood learning experience, our learners can uncover unique applications and solutions because of their view of the world.
Learners
We believe our learners are “transformative intellectuals” who exhibit “complexity, commitment, and credibility (Morales-Doyle, 2017).”
As a result, we expect that our learners are experts in their circumstances, understand their own and community needs, and have an intimate understanding of the data relevant to their experiences. When equipped with liberative technical curriculum, we believe in their ability to identify and create solutions that are meaningful. Solutions built by empowered and skilled young people can positively impact them, their communities, and all of us that are affected by digital and data oppression in a unique way.
Curriculum
Hack the Hood’s curriculum is problem-posing, culturally relevant data science education that provides a foundation for data-related work. In this endeavor, we focus on problems that face the Black, Latino, and Indigenous communities as identified by our learners.
Again, affirming their credibility, we can combine the problems that they know to provide discourse for data science education. By linking to problems our learners have posed and care about, we expect that we are able to position them for socio-political action. We believe that data science skills, data literacy, and functional technical skills are necessary for participation not only in the tech industry but also for liberative participation in our increasingly tech-reliant society.
Outcomes
Our learners are prepared for success among several paths with culturally and ethically competent data skills.
In addition to typical tech industry career pathways in both tech and tech-adjacent roles, we also aim to enable students to take their data science skills and apply them to socio-political, community-based issues. This particular feature is our embodiment of Paulo Friere’s liberatory pedagogy-- learning that aims to address social change from the perspective of those experiencing oppression and equipping them with the tools to address it.
Conclusion
These concepts have been the core of Hack the Hood since its inception and present throughout the organizational history, program approach, alumni, staff, and board members’ views and commitment to the organization. Naming and articulating that philosophy provides our growing organization a framework to move forward at an appropriate pace with a guiding resource to check ourselves, our decisions, and our approach. The aim is to allow us to insert most technical topics into the framework. As technology evolves, these essential features will not change but will probably update. These essential features are what make Hack the Hood an essential organization to our learners and the community.