Does a Taste of Computing Increase Computer Science Enrollment?

The Exploring Computer Science (ECS) high school curriculum is designed to foster deep engagement through equitable inquiry around computer science concepts. We have shown that students find ECS courses personally relevant, are increasing their expectancies of success and perceived value for the field of computer science, and are more likely to take another computing course

Introductory programming: a systematic literature review

As computing becomes a mainstream discipline embedded in the school curriculum and acts as an enabler for an increasing range of academic disciplines in higher education, the literature on introductory programming is growing. Although there have been several reviews that focus on specific aspects of introductory programming, there has been no broad overview of the literature exploring recent trends across the breadth of introductory programming. This paper is the report of an ITiCSE working group that conducted a systematic review in order to gain an overview of the introductory programming literature. Partitioning the literature into papers addressing the student, teaching, the curriculum, and assessment, we explore trends, highlight advances in knowledge over the past 15 years, and indicate possible directions for future research

Computational Thinking in Education: Where does it fit? A systematic literary review

Computational Thinking (CT) has been described as an essential skill which everyone should learn and can therefore include in their skill set. Seymour Papert is credited as concretising Computational Thinking in 1980 but since Wing popularised the term in 2006 and brought it to the international community's attention, more and more research has been conducted on CT in education. The aim of this systematic literary review is to give educators and education researchers an overview of what work has been carried out in the domain, as well as potential gaps and opportunities that still exist. Overall it was found in this review that, although there is a lot of work currently being done around the world in many different educational contexts, the work relating to CT is still in its infancy. Along with the need to create an agreed-upon definition of CT lots of countries are still in the process of, or have not yet started, introducing CT into curriculums in all levels of education. It was also found that Computer Science/Computing, which could be the most obvious place to teach CT, has yet to become a mainstream subject in some countries, although this is improving. Of encouragement to educators is the wealth of tools and resources being developed to help teach CT as well as more and more work relating to curriculum development. For those teachers looking to incorporate CT into their schools or classes then there are bountiful options which include programming, hands-on exercises and more. The need for more detailed lesson plans and curriculum structure however, is something that could be of benefit to teachers

The Seminarts experience: restructuring a ninth grade transitional program in a whole school arts academy

The potential problem with a student\u27s high school experience may begin as soon as he/she enters the high school. Freshmen students experience increased changes in school environment, as well as new friends, teachers, rules and regulations, and challenging courses. They need to maneuver all of these experiences with complex social-emotional and physiological upheavals associated with adolescence. For some students, this transition to high school has negative consequences that lead to achievement loss and dropping out of school. Because of this, effective transitional programs that assist new ninth grade students into high school are needed. Freshmen require procedural, social, and academic supports before they enter high school and during their first year in the new school. Personalization and social advocacy by caring adults, academic rigor, and curriculum relevancy are important aspects for student success. The purpose of this action research study was to examine the effectiveness of a ninth grade transitional program in a new high school arts academy. An additional purpose of this study was to integrate the freshman faculty into the decision-making process of this program. The research study used both qualitative and quantitative data of the academy\u27s transitional programs. This included a bridge program for ninth graders called Success Seminar in the first year of the academy. This seminar class offered organizational, study, and social-emotional skills for the new high school student. Because the school failed to offer an arts class for ninth graders when it opened, a Seminarts (seminar plus arts) blocked transitional program began the following year. It incorporated both the seminar skills and an arts component as a ninth grade program. The effectiveness of both programs, and the comparisons between them became the basis of this study. Data were retrieved through teacher and student surveys and focus groups, teacher interviews, class observations, committee teamwork, and an analysis of student achievement documents. Descriptive statistics of study findings indicated that freshmen can articulate clearly what they expect from their arts academy and what they need to be successful. They described caring, experienced teachers, project-based cooperative learning, and increased school arts experiences as aspects that will help them succeed. Freshmen saw the value of the seminar skills, but did not always see the validity or importance of the seminar activities. They did clarify their desire for an arts program as soon as they entered the high school. Teachers also expressed what was needed for freshmen to prosper in high school. They spoke passionately about their educational and personal values and how they wanted the best for their students. Teachers expressed their values in the classroom setting, in lesson plans, in interviews, and focus groups. Yet there was a disconnect between the low-level tasks students were performing and the rigorous objectives expected of them. Teachers followed the seminar curriculum but watered down the challenging aspects of the assignments, or modified the pace of the lessons. Even with improvements in the second year of the academy, student achievement was not reflective of lasting learning where students used higher thinking skills of analysis, synthesis, or evaluation. In committee work, team members planned and coordinated a variety of programs to anchor the freshmen into their school. Teachers gave many innovative ideas on how to provide artistic experiences to students, develop a vision for the school, and establish initiatives to reach out to the middle schools. Through all of the various data findings, the staff targeted issues of scheduling, curriculum, professional development, and communication issues, within the school and to the feeder schools, as aspects for the success of Seminarts. Armed with this knowledge, the action research study enabled a core group of arts teachers to continue to plan for an effective ninth grade transitional program in the high school arts academy

The Evaluation of Enhanced Academic Instruction in After-School Programs: Findings After the First Year of Implementation

This report presents one-year implementation and impact findings on two supplemental academic instruction approaches developed for after-school settings -- one for math and one for reading. Compared with regular after-school programming, the supplemental math program had impacts on student SAT 10 test scores and the supplemental reading program did not --although the reading program had some effect on reading fluency

Start a revolution in your head! The rebirth of ICT ethics education

This paper is a viewpoint rather than grounded in research. It questions some of the established ICT norms and traditions which exist both in industry and academia. The aim is to review current ICT ethics educational strategy and suggest a repositioning which aligns with the concept of computing by everyone for everyone. Professional bodies, in their current role, have little influence on 97 percent of global software developers whose ethical code and attitude to social responsibility comes from elsewhere. There needs to be a radical change in how the ethical and social responsibility dimension of ICT is included in education of the whole population rather than focusing on the elitist computing professional community. It is against this backdrop that this paper explores new avenues for widening education, both formal and informal, to all those who may become involved in computing. The discussion concludes by laying out a new pathway for ICT ethics education which embraces people of all ages and all walks of life

Enhancing the social issues components in our computing curriculum: Computing for the social good

The acceptance and integration of social issues into computing curricula is still a work in progress twenty years after it was first incorporated into the ACM Computing Curricula. Through an international survey of computing instructors, this paper corroborates prior work showing that most institutions include the societal impact of ICT in their programs. However, topics often concentrate on computer history, codes of ethics and intellectual property, while neglecting broader issues of societal impact. This paper explores how these neglected topics can be better developed through a subtle change of focus to the significant role that ICT plays in addressing the needs of the community. Drawing on the survey and a set of implementation cases, the paper provides guidance by means of examples and resources to empower teaching teams to engage students in the application of ICT to bring about positive social outcomes – computing for the social good

IEA International Computer and Information Literacy Study 2018 Assessment Framework

This open access book presents the assessment framework for IEA’s International Computer an Information Literacy Study (ICILS) 2018, which is designed to assess how well students are prepared for study, work and life in a digital world. The study measures international differences in students’ computer and information literacy (CIL): their ability to use computers to investigate, create, participate and communicate at home, at school, in the workplace and in the community. Participating countries also have an option for their students to complete an assessment of computational thinking (CT). The ICILS assessment framework articulates the basic structure of the study, providing a description of the field and the constructs to be measured. This book outlines the design and content of the measurement instruments, sets down the rationale for those designs, and describes how measures generated by those instruments relate to the constructs. Hypothesized relations between constructs provide the foundation for some of the analyses that follow. Above all, the framework links ICILS to other similar research, enabling the contents of this assessment framework to combine theory and practice in an explication of both the ‘what’ and the ‘how’ of ICILS