Collette Roberto

Collette is a PhD student working at the intersection of Computer Science (CS) Education and Learning Sciences (LS). She has worked across a number of critical computing education projects and their respective incredible teams. One such incredible team includes Dr. Michelle Wilkerson and Dr. Kris Gutiérrez’s Writing Data Stories project, where middle schoolers transform data to tell sociocritical data narratives. Another incredible team includes Dr. Armando Fox and Dr. Dan Garcia’s Algorithms in Computing Education Lab, where graduates, undergraduates, and professors from across UC Berkeley departments integrate theories to push the young CS Education field in new directions.

Collette is interested in the design of new approaches to CS Education that reject the notion that science is neutral and objective. The design of such approaches requires meaningful stake in the communities we serve, and similarly rejects the notion of researchers as unbiased observers. Instead, Collette believes that the way forward is to engage in co-design with students and teachers for new CS learning experiences. She is interested in questions such as, “Who does this research actually serve?”

Finally, Collette is interested in the tools themselves. She asks, “How can thoughtfully designed computing tools - like the Common Online Data Analysis Platform (CODAP), the Web-based Inquiry Science Environment (WISE), or the Python-using Land Protectors game (PyProtectors - previously Guaiya Means Love) - mediate new forms of learning and knowledge creation?”

Outside of research, Collette is a musical theatre fanatic. Collette loves dogs, loves to run, and LOVES to sing. She can sort-of cook, if you like gluten-free vegan pumpkin muffins and sweet and sour tofu. Collette is really good in 1:1 conversations, and she is still learning how to take space and make space in large groups. But most importantly, Collette is always down for a heart-to-heart conversation, especially about academia!