Introducing Coding Into Teacher Education: An Interdisciplinary Robotics Experience for Education and Engineering Students

Despite nationwide mandates to integrate computer science into P-6 curriculum, most P-6 preservice teachers (PSTs) are not exposed to coding or computational thinking during their professional preparation, and are unprepared to teach these topics. This study, conducted as a part of an NSF-funded project, explores a teacher preparation model designed to increase PSTs’ coding knowledge and coding self-efficacy. PSTs in an educational technology course partnered with engineering undergraduates (EUs) in a computational methods course and worked side-by-side on robotics activities to develop skill and confidence with basic programming concepts and block coding. Students utilized experience gained from these interdisciplinary partnerships to lead robotics activities with fifth and sixth grade students (FSGs) in an after-school technology club. Findings from quantitative studies suggest that the implementation of the approach resulted in a significant increase in both PSTs’ coding knowledge and coding self-efficacy. Qualitative studies revealed that most PSTs’ and EUs’ perceived value of the project was positive

Curriculum –Releasing Maths Anxiety with the Use of Robotics

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Professional development for digital competencies in early childhood education and care. A systematic review

Digitalisation places new demands on the early childhood education and care (ECEC) workforce to navigate the care and well-being of children in the digital age. This literature review examines frameworks for digital competencies (DC) in education, with a focus on ECEC, as well as variation in DC requirements for ECEC staff with different responsibilities. It explores strategies for a successful integration of DC in ECEC workforce development programmes. The review shows there has been limited research and policy support regarding the development of DC in ECEC and discusses the importance for the ECEC workforce to understand how digital technologies may be incorporated to their work, encompassing both technical aspects and responsible use, as well as the social and collaborative dimensions of professional development in this area. The review examines also how attitudes towards technology use with young children condition skills development in the sector

Elementary Educators\u27 Attitudes about the Utility of Educational Robotics and Their Ability and Intent to Use It with Students

Educational robotics (ER) combines accessible and age-appropriate building materials, programmable interfaces, and computer coding to teach science and mathematics using the engineering design process. ER has been shown to increase K-12 students\u27 understanding of STEM concepts, and can develop students\u27 self-confidence and interest in STEM. As educators struggle to adapt their current science teaching practices to meet the new interdisciplinary nature of the Next Generation Science Standards, ER has the potential to simultaneously integrate STEM disciplines, engage and inspire students in mathematics and science, and build connections to STEM careers. One challenge is a lack of documented models for preparing educators, particularly at the elementary level, to effectively use robotics in their classrooms. The lack of scholarship on appropriate robotics platforms for elementary learners, reliable techniques of delivering professional development in ER, or standardized instruments that can reliably measure elementary educators\u27 self-efficacy with robotics suggests there is a need for such research. The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of a four-hour, hands-on, ER professional development workshop on K-5th grade educators\u27 attitudes about their ability to teach ER, the value (utility) of the technology, and their desire to use it (intent). An 18-question survey was administered before (pre-) and after (post-) the workshop, as well as a third time after educators had an opportunity to use robotics with students (post-post). In order to extend and explain the quantitative data, 60% of the educators who completed all three surveys were also interviewed. This study sought to determine if any of the trained educators also participated in after-school robotics competitions, and if so what impact that had on their attitudes of using ER. Results comparing the pre to post workshop means determined that there were statistically significant differences with large effect sizes in educators\u27 attitudes across all three subscales. The interviews supported the conclusion that the workshop and classroom kits are important for successful implementation of ER in classrooms. Post use surveys did not result in statistically significant differences in educators\u27 attitudes, demonstrating persistence of attitudes consistent with the interview results that revealed educators value the hands-on nature of ER which they believe increases student engagement in STEM and cross-curricular learning. A case-study of one educator suggests that participation in FIRSTRTM LEGORTM League Jr. increased the skills, confidence, and engagement of both the teacher and students which led to the integration of engineering practices, and school-wide interest in ER. This study demonstrates the importance of high-quality professional development in increasing educators\u27 self-efficacy with using ER with elementary students, and suggests that new tablet-based, wireless robotics platforms, such as the LEGORTM WeDo 2.0 enable younger learners to engaged with this technology. Additional research is necessary to better understand the impact of ER on students, and to identify and study schools where ER helped lead a transformation of the teaching toward constructionism. It is vital for the success of our children and our nation that we engage and inspire students in STEM subjects and career pathways at an early age if we are to meet the needs of the 21st century job market, reduce disparities in STEM fields, and maintain our place in the global economy

The Need to Integrate Computer Science

This school improvement plan outlines a detailed three-year strategy designed to integrate computer science into the K-5 curriculum. Emphasizing a comprehensive approach, the action plan employs a multi-tiered strategy combining a standalone curriculum with embedded activities. Drawing insights from successful educational practices and leveraging resources, the plan strategically aligns the curriculum with CSTA standards while fostering hands-on learning experiences at various grade levels. The timeline features foundational teacher training, curriculum integration, community engagement events, and consistent assessment processes. The plan aims to create an environment where both students and educators actively participate in the dynamic landscape of computer science education. By using a phased approach, this blueprint offers a comprehensive understanding of computer science concepts, equipping students for success in a technology-driven world. The plan acknowledges the importance of monitoring potential barriers and challenges to ensure effectiveness in the integration process

Education News 2012-2013

Cover Story: Virtual Classroom: TeachLive pilot program allows UM students to train with interactive avatars. Pictured: Shannon Green, Class of 2014https://egrove.olemiss.edu/ed_edge/1003/thumbnail.jp

Greater than the Sum of its Parts: Centering Science within Elementary STEM Education

Conceptualizing STEM Integration For our reform efforts, the fundamental question to consider was, “What is STEM learning, or what should count as STEM learning?” The different models and definitions for Integrated STEM education range from STEM disciplines traditionally taught as separate and distinct content areas to integration among the four STEM disciplines (NAE and NRC, 2014; Stohlmann et al., 2012). Teacher educators are often challenged to design STEM learning experiences within teacher preparation courses that prepare for the reality of classrooms while presenting pedagogical alternatives (Corp et al., 2020). Many researchers, for instance, Roehrig et al. (2012) distinguish between content and context integration of STEM. Content integration requires the blending of knowledge from different content fields into a single curricular activity or unit to build a collective knowledge of STEM from multiple content areas (Roehrig et al., 2012; Wang et al., 2011) while context integration, “primarily focuses on the content of one discipline and uses contexts from others” to make the content more relevant (Roehrig et al., 2012, p. 9). Most researchers conclude that STEM integration should involve the merging of some or all the STEM disciplines to solve real-world problems (Moore et al., 2020; Rinke et al., 2016). Our conceptualization of STEM integration stems from (1) Dewey’s work (1938) that highlights learning as an active process that involves students engaged in experiences situated in and connected to the real world and, (2) ideas based on social constructivism developed by Vygotsky (1978) that emphasize learning via social interactions among individuals within a social setting. Constructionist theory (Ackermann, 2001; Harel and Papert, 1991; Papert, 1980) also framed learning experiences in the integrated STEM semester. Teaching Integrated STEM calls for pedagogies that pro-mote active learning that engages students in social interactions while working collaboratively in teams (Moore et al., 2014), and knowledge that is constructed via social discourse (Stohlmann et al., 2012). Other pedagogies that are fundamental to conceptualizing STEM learning are inquiry-based and hands-on strategies promoted in the Next Generation Science Standards (Bybee, 2009); NGSS Lead States, 2013), problem-based learning that involves a problem to solve (Shaughnessy, 2013) and connections to real-life experiences (Kelley and Knowles, 2016). In leading our curriculum reform effort, we draw upon the viewpoint that STEM curriculum must involve both content and context integration. Our framework positions science at the center placing emphasis on scientific inquiry (Kelley and Knowles, 2016). Integrated STEM education has strong ties to inquiry processes allowing students to formulate questions, participate in investigations that facilitate engineering design, and integrate technology and mathematics to design solutions to complex real-world problems (Kennedy and Odell, 2014; Moore and Smith, 2014). The framework served as a guide to inform our Integrated STEM curriculum design and STEM pathways (shared assignments) across multiple courses within the STEM Semester as explained in the subsequent sections

A scoping review on the relationship between robotics in educational contexts and e-health

In recent years, due to technological advancement, research has been directed to the development and analysis of resources and tools related to educational robotics with particular attention to the field of special needs and training actions aimed at learners, teachers, professionals, and families. The use of robotics in all levels of education can support the development of logical and computational thinking, interaction, communication, and socialization, and the acquisition of particularly complex work practices, for example, in the medical field. The adoption of successful educational robotics training practices can be a potential tool to support rehabilitation interventions for disabilities and comprehensive training for students or future professionals in healthcare. A scoping review was conducted on the main topics “education” AND “robotics” with three specific focuses on complementary themes in educational research about ER: (1) teaching and computational thinking, (2) training in the health sector, and (3) education and special needs. The authors systematically searched two online databases, Scopus and Web of Science, up to April 2022. A total of 164 articles were evaluated, and 59 articles were analyzed, in a particular way N = 33 related to computational thinking, N = 15 related to e-health, and N = 11 related to special needs. The following four questions guided our research: (1) What are the educational and experimental experiences conducted through robotics in transdisciplinary fields? (2) What tools and resources are most used in such experiments (educational robotics kit, humanoid robots, telepresence robots etc.)? (3) What are the constitutive elements of the experiments and studies involving robotics and health in educational contexts? and (4) What are those explicitly related to students with special needs? In this study, part of the research project “Robotics and E-health: new Challenges for Education” (RECE) activated at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia. RECE aims to investigate the training, educational, cognitive, and legal processes induced by the increasing diffusion of educational robotics and telemedicine in clinical and surgical contexts

Higher Education Course Curriculum for a Distance Learning Model Reinforced with Robotics for 3 to7 Years Old Children

The curriculum is organized in five different modules, with different focus. The first module is about Basic Concepts of Computational Thinking, presenting the foundations for the rest of the learning. The second module, on Computational Thinking with Block-Based and Text-Based Coding Environments, and the third module, on the Fundamentals of Physical Programming and CT with Robotic Activities, further expand the learning about computational thinking by providing information on the potential of preschool children for computational thinking and how this can be developed through different environments and tools. The fourth module changes the focus to planning and evaluating activities with children by presenting information on Designing Activities and Learning through Distance Education. This is the module that deals with the challenges and potential of distance education in Early Childhood Education, connecting practice with reflection and further learning for educators through self-evaluation and reflection. Finally, the fifth module, on Building Partnerships for Learning, looks at the development of digital skills for early age as a societal endeavour, supporting practitioners in identifying partners and initiatives as well as building communities that can leverage the educational offer. The whole curriculum was planned to provide knowledge and competences that support the development of a distance learning model reinforced with robotics for 3-7 years old children. But each module is a stand-alone learning opportunity based on the lesson plans, slides presentation and materials available. Interested users are also welcome to combine different modules into unique training experiences.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Focusing a New Lens: STEM Professional Development for Early Education and Care Educators and Programs

The purpose of this groundbreaking grassroots report is to engage early childhood educators and policy makers in understanding the urgency and importance of early childhood educator professional development in STEM education (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). This report focuses on the teaching of children birth to five years old and out of school time students. STEM…Science…Technology…Engineering…Math. These are not curriculum topics that early childhood educators traditionally call to mind when planning activities. However, the evidence supporting the importance and emphasis on STEM education in early childhood is overwhelming. Children are engineers, problem solvers, and collaborators at heart- with boundless potential for leadership, creativity and innovation. Filling their days building and creating with blocks and manipulatives, wooden sticks and Legos, finger-paints and clay, they naturally seek solutions to challenges, discuss multiple options and, when necessary, start over! Essential to supporting, extending and deepening children’s STEM learning is the presence in classrooms of well-prepared educators, in both content and appropriate instructional strategies. Thus, this report urges educators to view their role, the children they teach and the early childhood environment through a powerful “new lens,” one that focuses on STEM education and professional development