MATH AND MAKING FOR MIDDLE SCHOOL YOUTH: A LONGITUDINAL SINGLE-CASE STUDY

In AMPED 4 Making, middle school youth engaged in design-and-making projects that address community goals aiming for changes in youth's relationship with mathematics and making.In each project, youth used mathematics to design, prototype, or build meaningful and useful artifacts.Part of AMPED 4 relies on the life and values of Cesar Chavez as a touchstone for Latinx youth's positive identity.AMPED 4 Making sought to understand how the program supported the development of positive math and making identities among participating youth.This longitudinal single-case study uses object elicitation data to show the changes in math and making identities that Rose experienced over the course of her participation in AMPED 4 Making over two school years.Object elicitation is a data collection method that centers the youth interview around an object that youth made in the program.Since the objects were created by the youth, the objects embody the youth's knowledge, skills, and attitudes.The findings in this longitudinal single-case study show that AMPED 4 Making provided Rose with opportunities to engage in consequential math and making for communities, supporting her development of a positive identity as a maker and math user.