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The purpose of this paper is to present the design and evolution of the Dancing Computer project. Dancing Computer is an ongoing research project at the Michigan State University, which is developing a system that aims to increase computer literacy in elementary-aged children by teaching them first to read code before they write it. The main objective is to educate children on basic concepts of computer science.

Children are given tablet computers that present a simple program line-by-line that they execute as they pretend to be a computer. The programs are acted out on a portable dance floor consisting of colored tiles, and the program statements instruct the child to move, turn and act out dance poses and terminology.

The Dancing Computer prototype was tested in six different locations in 2016, reaching approximately 250 students. Learning was demonstrated by significant improvements in both task duration and error performance as students performed the activities. The most common errors were movement errors, where participants failed to move the correct number of squares.

This project has the potential to increase the level of computer literacy for thousands of children. This project’s goal is to increase understanding of what a computer does, what a program does and the step-by-step nature of computer programs.

This is a unique and a different approach – the norm being to start students off writing code in some language. In Dancing Computer stages children as readers of programs, allowing them to pretend to be a computer in a fun and engaging activity while also learning how computers execute real programs.

While holistic studies devoted to the information behavior of humanist scholars have begun to appear more frequently in the literature, there has been, until quite recently, a persistent tendency to consolidate humanists rather than attend to the variant gestalts, material working conditions, and values that might distinguish one from another. This chapter is a response to recent calls for more finely granulated descriptions of specific humanist disciplinary practices. It offers a close examination of the information behavior of theatre researchers, both academics and practitioners. For reasons that the chapter explores, theatre researchers constitute a user group that has been profoundly neglected. Using both quantitative and qualitative data obtained through a survey of listserv members of the American Society for Theatrical Research and the Theatre Library Association, the chapter examines the impact of theatre culture on theatre research practices. Moreover, inspired by Brenda Dervin's “Sense-Making Methodology,” this chapter offers the embedded perspective of a researcher who is herself a theatre scholar as well as a practicing librarian. The chapter ranges widely, illustrating its findings with, for example, published rehearsal memoirs, statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor, white papers produced by the National Endowment of the Arts, performance theory texts. Topics covered include the history of theatre studies as an academic discipline, the multiple job-holding/unemployment culture of practitioners such as actors and directors, the differences in focus and methodology that distinguish practitioners from scholars, the marginalized status of dramatic literature in university English departments. Several themes that emerged through analysis of qualitative data are discussed: the contrast between scholarly rigor and the tendency of the practitioner to “satisfice,” the conflicting claims of text and artifact, the impact of geography and teaching-intensive institutional affiliation on researchers’ access to resources. The author concludes that it is not only inadvisable and inaccurate to generalize behaviors across humanistic disciplines; it is equally inaccurate to assume that all researchers within the same discipline will manifest the same characteristics, or even that the same researcher will apply the same strategies to all projects. The only generalization about the information behavior of the theatre researcher that can be made is that it is highly task and context dependent.

The purpose of this paper is to outline one innovative Australian initiative to harness creative, often intangible, knowledge, and reap the benefits of the intellectual capital of dance artists both during and post performing careers – the project Securing Career Opportunities and Professional Employment (SCOPE) which has been running for the last three years in conjunction with the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS).

Unlike much of the work in the field of knowledge management that concentrates on individual organization knowledge management processes and practices, this paper takes an industry‐sector‐wide perspective, utilizing written, and oral data sources.

International focus on innovation, entrepreneurship, creativity and knowledge management has led to a growing recognition of the role of the creative industries for our post industrial economic well being. Dance plays a central role as a unique way of knowing and learning, with both intrinsic and instrumental value. Whilst there is diversity among dance artists, one unifying feature is short careers as performers. Having amassed an array of special attributes and competencies that are beneficial, it is crucial for artists to manage the knowledge gained through their training and careers in order to sustain and reap the benefits of their intellectual capital. The creative value of dance artists' capabilities can be a beacon in the link between creativity and economic outcomes. SCOPE is especially innovative as, unlike other programs, it moves beyond the notion of a transition program to emphasizing that of career development and sector knowledge management.

The research case study approach contributes to a fuller understanding of a very under researched area – first, that of management in the performing arts; and second, in knowledge management within an industry sector.

The chapter reviews recent evidence of, and debates about, the integration of art, entertainment, and media in media portrayals (e.g., movies, photographs, theater, music, performance art, museums, story-telling, modifications of an environmental space, social media, painting, comics, dance, videogames, etc.) of climate change based on three sources of data: 1) articles listed in academic reference databases and Google Scholar, 2) online sites, and 3) climate change news images. 1) Retrieved articles discuss both the potential and challenges of communicating about climate change through art, entertainment, and media. However, research is inconsistent on and in some cases is critical of the nature and extent of effects of art-based climate communication. 2) The Internet is a rich and diverse source of websites and videos about climate change. We analyzed 49 sites based on the art medium or form discussed, the primary content related to climate change, and the apparent goal of the site or video. The most frequent goals were promote action, collaboration, raise awareness, climate change communication, discussion, empowerment, reshape public perception, and engagement. 3) Based on the major themes and frames identified through content and cluster analysis of 350 images associated with 200 news articles from 11 US newspaper and magazine sources through late 2009, we summarize the theme of art and mass media representations of the environment, and how those are associated with the other major themes. We conclude by suggesting promising areas for future research on the intersection of art and science in communicating about climate change.

In an era of polycrisis, we argue that responsible leaders need to unlearn common thinking patterns imprinted by old (management) paradigms in order to find new solutions to the grand challenges of our time. To be able to overcome the “crisis of the imagination” and spur narratives about more sustainable futures, leaders need to update and restructure their skill sets and invest in developing anticipatory and futures (thinking) skills, as well as futures literacy as a competence. To achieve this on the student level, we also need to rethink business and management education at the university level by challenging the ways we teach, i.e., teaching pedagogics, as well as the content and story we want to tell about the future of management. Thus, with this chapter, we aim to rethink pedagogical methods and tools by introducing educators to potential pathways for equipping students with adequate skills to be able to “use-the-future”. As the process of unlearning is difficult, we argue that we need to venture out of the business discipline and push the barriers of the business and management curriculum so as to be able to further unleash creativity and imagination. To achieve this aim, we propose the integration of methods and approaches from art-related disciplines, such as theater, visual arts, or design, into the business curriculum.