#1066: Design as Relational Pedagogy: Culturally Sustaining Computing with Tibetan Girls in Diaspora

This paper examines how design and pedagogy jointly shaped learning, belonging, and identity in a six-week virtual computing program for Tibetan diaspora youth in the United States. Guided by sociocultural and relational perspectives, we analyze two cases—Lhamo and Tenzin, Tibetan girls who designed games and websites that expressed community stories, language, and values. Using abductive thematic analysis of session recordings, artifacts, and interviews, we identify four mechanisms of design as relational pedagogy: pedagogical mediation of tools, collaborative care, storytelling as reflection, and community-oriented visioning. Design elements such as demo codes and AI chatbot became meaningful only when relationally activated through modeling, dialogue, humor, and recognition. These interactions transformed computing into a practice of cultural care—a medium for remembering, reimagining, and embracing Tibetan identity. The study advances a relational framework for culturally sustaining computing, highlighting how pedagogical and design interactions animate learning as an ethical, affective, and community-rooted practice.