Texture, Buttons, Sound and Code: Modal Preference and the Formation of Expert Identities

This paper examines a making project in a 9th grade English language arts (ELA) class through the lenses of multimodality and identity. Students retold popular picture books in a tactile form for an audience of children with visual impairments. They embedded audio in 3D printed pages using copper tape and Makey Makey boards that interacted with Scratch programs to play student-composed sound. Some students gravitated to certain modes and tools while designing their tactile books. As they developed expertise, they were recognized as resources within their groups and class. This study considers how giving students the opportunity to compose in multiple modes with a variety of tools during a collaborative design experience may offer opportunities for the development of expert identities.