Thesis/Project Final Defense Schedule
Join us as the School of STEM master’s degree candidates present their culminating thesis and project work. The schedule is updated throughout the quarter, check back for new defenses.
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Master of Science in Computer Science & Software Engineering
WINTER 2026
Wednesday, February 25
DEBOSHRI DAS
Chair: Dr. Min Chen
Candidate: Master of Science in Computer Science & Software Engineering
11:00 A.M.; Join Deboshri Das’ Online Defense
Project: Blackfoot – Play and Learn: Designing a Game-Based Language Learning Application
Blackfoot (NiitsÃʼpowahsin) is a culturally and historically significant Indigenous language of the Blackfoot Confederacy and a primary medium through which community knowledge, identity, and oral traditions are sustained. As with many Indigenous languages, Blackfoot is experiencing ongoing endangerment, highlighting the need for accessible learning tools and culturally grounded resources that support intergenerational transmission and revitalization.
This paper presents the design and implementation of Blackfoot – Play and Learn, a web-based, game-driven language-learning application that integrates cultural context with structured, practice-oriented activities. The application is organized as a suite of modular learning experiences, including a Blackfoot History module and several interactive activities: Flashcards for incremental vocabulary acquisition, Blackfoot Builder for scaffolded construction of meaning through guided word selection, Voices of the Blackfoot for listening-centered engagement with narrative content and dialect identification, and a Quiz module for rapid recall and self-assessment. A persistent leaderboard provides lightweight gamification to encourage continued engagement and make progress visible across activities. Because Blackfoot is spoken across multiple dialects, the system incorporates dialect awareness throughout its modules rather than assuming a single standardized variety. The system is implemented as a React-based web application using client-side routing and reusable, modular UI components.
The project follows Agile development practices with iterative feature delivery and periodic review feedback. Emphasis was placed on code quality, modular design, reusable utilities, and backend best practices such as normalized answer checking, debounced availability validation, provider-aware reauthentication, and guarded asynchronous data access. The resulting system demonstrates a scalable, maintainable architecture for culturally informed, game-based language learning, and provides a foundation for future adaptive and community-driven extensions.