Hiding in Plain Sight: Identifying Computational Thinking in the Ontario Elementary School Curriculum

Given a growing digital economy with complex problems, demands are being made for education to address computational thinking (CT) – an approach to problem solving that draws on the tenets of computer science. We conducted a comprehensive content analysis of the Ontario elementary school curriculum documents for 44 CT-related terms to examine the extent to which CT may already be considered within the curriculum. The quantitative analysis strategy provided frequencies of terms, and a qualitative analysis provided information about how and where terms were being used. As predicted, results showed that while CT terms appeared mostly in Mathematics, and concepts and perspectives were more frequently cited than practices, related terms appeared across almost all disciplines and grades. Findings suggest that CT is already a relevant consideration for educators in terms of concepts and perspectives; however, CT practices should be more widely incorporated to promote 21st century skills across disciplines. Future research would benefit from continued examination of the implementation and assessment of CT and its related concepts, practices, and perspectives

Examining Pinterest as a Curriculum Resource for Negative Integers: An Initial Investigation

This paper reports an investigation of mathematical resources available on the social media site Pinterest. Pinterest is an online bulletin board where users create visual bookmarks called pins in order to share digital content (e.g., webpages, images, videos). Although recent surveys have shown that Pinterest is a popular reference for teachers, understanding of the mathematical resources available on the site is lacking. To take initial steps in investigating the curriculum resources provided by Pinterest, we used keyword searches to gather a database of pins related to the topic of negative integers. A content analysis was conducted on the pins with a focus on several characteristics including mathematical operations, mathematical models, use of real-world context, and whether mathematical errors were present in source material. Results show a dominance of addition and subtraction over other operations, use of mathematical models in half of pins, infrequent use of real-world context, and mathematical errors in roughly one-third of pins. We provide a breakdown of these results and discuss implications of the findings for mathematics teacher education and professional development

Service Learning Enhances Conceptual Learning in a RN to BSN Program

A qualitative study using transcript analysis was conducted to examine the effectiveness of service learning in enhancing conceptual learning in RN to BSN students. As part of their capstone course in an online program, students engaged in 64 hours of service learning in their local community. The transcripts of asynchronous discussions and journal entries formed the data for analysis. The findings illustrated that the student’s conceptual understanding was enhanced from the service learning experience. Further, the students demonstrated higher-level thinking by linking concepts that could be applied to nursing practice. Service learning reinforced the community-based philosophy of the School of Nursing, and strengthened their abilities in leadership, teamwork, and collaboration with a greater orientation to community, vulnerable populations, and health promotion. Service learning was found to be an effective way to use the skills of the registered nurse for health related service in the community while also meeting their academic and individual learning needs

Developing a national dental education research strategy:priorities, barriers and enablers

Objectives: This study aimed to identify national dental education research (DER) priorities for the next 3-5 years and to identify barriers and enablers to DER. Setting: Scotland Participants: In this two-stage online questionnaire study we collected data with multiple dental professions (e.g. dentistry, dental nursing, dental hygiene) and stakeholder groups (e.g. learners, clinicians, educators, managers, researchers, academics). Eighty-five participants completed the Stage 1 qualitative questionnaire and 649 participants the Stage 2 quantitative questionnaire. Results: Eight themes were identified at Stage 1. Of the 24 DER priorities identified, the top three were: role of assessments in identifying competence; undergraduate curriculum prepares for practice; and promoting teamwork. Following exploratory factor analysis, the 24 items loaded onto four factors: teamwork and professionalism, measuring and enhancing performance, dental workforce issues, and curriculum integration and innovation. Barriers and enablers existed at multiple levels: individual, interpersonal, institutional structures and cultures, and technology. Conclusion: This priority setting exercise provides a necessary first step to developing a national DER strategy capturing multiple perspectives. Promoting DER requires improved resourcing alongside efforts to overcome peer stigma and lack of valuing and motivation

Principles in Patterns (PiP) : Piloting of C-CAP - Evaluation of Impact and Implications for System and Process Development

The Principles in Patterns (PiP) project is leading a programme of innovation and development work intended to explore and develop new technology-supported approaches to curriculum design, approval and review. It is anticipated that such technology-supported approaches can improve the efficacy of curriculum approval processes at higher education (HE) institutions, thereby improving curriculum responsiveness and enabling improved and rapid review mechanisms which may produce enhancements to pedagogy. Curriculum design in HE is a key "teachable moment" and often remains one of the few occasions when academics will plan and structure their intended teaching. Technology-supported curriculum design therefore presents an opportunity for improving academic quality, pedagogy and learning impact. Approaches that are innovative in their use of technology offer the promise of an interactive curriculum design process within which the designer is offered system assistance to better adhere to pedagogical best practice, is exposed to novel and high impact learning designs from which to draw inspiration, and benefits from system support to detect common design issues, many of which can delay curriculum approval and distract academic quality teams from monitoring substantive academic issues. This strand of the PiP evaluation (WP7:38) attempts to understand the impact of the PiP Class and Course Approval Pilot (C-CAP) system within specific stakeholder groups and seeks to understand the extent to which C-CAP is considered to support process improvements. As process improvements and changes were studied in a largely quantitative capacity during a previous but related evaluative strand, this strand includes the gathering of additional qualitative data to better understand and verify the business process improvements and change effected by C-CAP. This report therefore summarises the outcome of C-CAP piloting within a University faculty, presents the methodology used for evaluation, and the associated analysis and discussion. More generally this report constitutes an additional evaluative contribution towards a wider understanding of technology-supported approaches to curriculum design and approval in HE institutions and their potential in improving process transparency, efficiency and effectiveness

Pre-service teachers as designers in the context of advertising literacy education

The present study describes how teacher design teams (TDTs) in pre-service education were set up to create in-school programs about advertising. A multiple case-study design was employed to reveal what kinds of input-, process-, and output-related factors facilitate or hinder the collaboration of three voluntarily participating teams of pre-service teachers. By combining pre-TDT questionnaire data with an analysis of audiorecorded team design discussions and reflective data collected after the design process, we found that the participating student teachers (1) were unfamiliar with design assignments at the start of the project, but were all intrinsically motivated to take part; (2) especially express practical concerns when designing learning materials, and (3) argue that TDTs positively contribute to their professional development. As this study revealed both facilitating and hindering factors, recommendations for future organization of and research on TDTs in pre-service education are offered

Selecting ELL Textbooks: A Content Analysis of Ethnicity Depicted in Illustrations and Writing

In an effort to respond to the need for culturally appropriate English Language Learning(ELL) resources for adolescent immigrants, the researchers gathered 64 textbooks actually in use in eight Milwaukee middle schools to analyze their content for the range of diversity of ethnicity depicted in illustrations and written text. The eight school settings selected provided a broad range of materials to analyze. In addition, these materials reflect both public and Catholic teachers’ resource selection in predominantly Latino and Southeast Asian American classroom contexts. The settings were chosen with the advice of administrators and teachers as schools they perceived to be of greatest need for ELL curriculum and instruction development. Based upon their findings, the researchers draw some initial conclusions and recommendations for the selection of culturally appropriate textbooks that fit the cultural contexts of the learners. Finally, the study provides as appendices the bibliography of textbooks under analysis and sample coding instruments used to analyze the content of these textbooks