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Steve Kelly

What would an exceptional middle and high school computer science curriculum include? -... - 48 views

  • What would an exceptional middle and high school computer science curriculum include?
  • This isn't a complete answer, but one thing the very first introductory classes should require is that the students turn off all their electronic computers and actually learn to walk through  algorithms with a computer that exists only on paper. (Or, I suppose, a whiteboard or a simulator.) This exercise would give the students a grounding in what is going on inside the computer as a very low level.My first computer programming class in my Freshman year of high school was completely on paper. Although it was done because the school didn't have much money, it turned out to be very beneficial.Another class I had in high school, that wouldn't normally be lumped into a Computer Science curriculum but has been a boon to my career, was good old Typing 101.
  • If you followed the CS Unplugged curriculum your students would know more about CS than most CS grads:http://csunplugged.orgIt's a really great intro to basic computer science concepts and very easy for students to understand.  Best of all you don't even need a computer per student if your school doesn't have the budget,
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  • For younger students, I think that the ability to make something professional-looking, like a real grown-up would, is paramount.  Sadly, I think this means that LOGO and BASIC aren't much use any more*.
  • So, we have a few choices.  You can try to write phone apps that look just like real phone apps, design interactive websites that look just like real interactive websites, or do something with embedded systems / robotics.  Avoid the temptation to make these things into group projects; the main thing every student needs to experience is the process of writing code, running it, debugging it, and watching the machine react to every command.
  • It is important to consider what an 11 to 18-year old is familiar with in terms of mathematics and logical thinking. An average 11-year old is probably learning about fractions, simple cartesian geometry, the concept of units, and mathematical expressions. By 15, the average student will be taking algebra, and hopefully will have the all-important concept of variables under his/her belt. So much in CS is dependent on solid understanding that symbols and tokens can represent abstract concepts, values, or algorithms. Without it, it's still possible to teach CS, but it must be done in a very different way (see Scratch).
  • At this point, concepts such as variables, parenthesis matching, and functions (of the mathematical variety) are within easy reach. Concepts like parameter passing, strings and collections, and program flow should be teachable. More advanced concepts such as recursion, references and pointers, certain data structures, and big-O may be very difficult to teach without first going through some more foundational math.
  • I tend to agree strongly with those that believe a foundational education should inspire interest and enforce concepts and critical thinking over teaching any specific language, framework, system, or dogma.
  • The key is that the concepts in CS aren't just there for the hell of it. Everything was motivated by a real problem, and few things are more satisfying than fixing something you really want to work with a cool technique or concept you just learned.
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    Great resource for teachers (especially those of us not initially trained in Computer Science) about what should 'count' as Computer Science.  Worth the read!
Roland Gesthuizen

Computer Science Teachers Association - 44 views

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    "The Computer Science Teachers Association is a membership organization that supports and promotes the teaching of computer science and other computing disciplines. CSTA provides opportunities for K-12 teachers and students to better understand the computing disciplines and to more successfully prepare themselves to teach and learn."
C CC

Feature: Computer Science Competition Encourages Pupil Ideas - 11 views

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    Encouraging pupils to develop computer science ideas
Roland Gesthuizen

Free Computer books Download | Online computer ebooks | online free computer science eb... - 158 views

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    "Freebookcentre.net contains links to thousands of free online technical books. Which Include core computer science, networking, programming languages, Systems Programming books, Linux books and many more."
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    Great collection of Computer Science, Physics, Mathematics and Electronics books.
Diana Irene Saldana

Computer Science Unplugged | - 48 views

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    CS Unplugged is a collection of free learning activities that teach Computer Science through engaging games and puzzles that use cards, string, crayons and lots of running around. The activities introduce students to underlying concepts such as binary numbers, algorithms and data compression, separated from the distractions and technical details we usually see with computers. CS Unplugged is suitable for people of all ages, from elementary school to seniors, and from many countries and backgrounds. Unplugged has been used around the world for over fifteen years, in classrooms, science centers, homes, and even for holiday events in a park!
Greg Brandenburg

Bringing Girls and Boys to Computer Science with 'Alice' - 1 views

  • Attracting females is key to the future of computer science, Rodger says. In 2008, only 11.8 percent of U.S. bachelor's degrees in computer science went to women, according to the Computing Research Association. And Duke's showing is hardly better, said Rodger, who is trying to turn that around by making programming fun to learn.
Roland Gesthuizen

Computer Science for High School: Computing and Information Systems, University of Melb... - 34 views

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    CS4HS is an initiative sponsored by Google to promote Computer Science and Computational Thinking in the secondary curriculum. This page lists CS4HS activities hosted at the University of Melbourne.
Randolph Hollingsworth

Project Kaleidoscope and STEM | TIDES | Overview on AAC&U website - 7 views

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    underrepresented minorities account for only 18% of the baccalaureate degrees in science and engineering (National Science Foundation, 2013). And despite the fact that women now outnumber men in college, between 2001 and 2010, the number of women earning baccalaureate degrees in computer science has decreased by 39%.
Roland Gesthuizen

BBC News - School ICT to be replaced by computer science programme - 3 views

  • "Instead of children bored out of their minds being taught how to use Word or Excel by bored teachers, we could have 11-year-olds able to write simple 2D computer animations," he said.
  • "Children are being forced to learn how to use applications, rather than to make them. They are becoming slaves to the user interface and are totally bored by it,"
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    The current programme of information and communications technology (ICT) study in England's schools will be scrapped from September, the education secretary has announced. It will be replaced by an "open source" curriculum in computer science and programming designed with the help of universities and industry.
Randolph Hollingsworth

CrowdGrader: Crowdsourcing the Evaluation of Homework Assignments - 57 views

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    Article on how their new crowdsourced grading platform worked for Computer Science students
Randolph Hollingsworth

National Center for Education Statistics, The Nation's Report Card: Writing 2011 - 2 views

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    Asa Spencer of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute writes in the Education Gadfly Weekly: "Traditionalists cringe, tech buffs rejoice: This latest NAEP writing assessment for grades eight and twelve marks the first computer-based appraisal (by the "nation's report card") of student proficiency in this subject. It evaluates students' writing skills (what NAEP calls both academic and workplace writing) based on three criteria: idea development, organization, and language facility and conventions. Results were predictably bad: Just twenty-four percent of eighth graders and 27 percent of twelfth graders scored proficient or above. Boys performed particularly poorly; half as many eighth-grade males reached proficiency as their female counterparts. The use of computers adds a level of complexity to these analyses: The software allows those being tested to use a thesaurus (which 29 percent of eighth graders exploited), text-to-speech software (71 percent of eighth graders used), spell check (three-quarters of twelfth graders), and kindred functions. It is unclear whether use of these crutches affected a student's "language facility" scores, though it sure seems likely. While this new mechanism for assessing kids' writing prowess makes it impossible to track trend data, one can make (disheartening) comparisons across subjects. About a third of eighth graders hit the NAEP proficiency benchmark in the latest science, math, and reading assessments, compared to a quarter for writing. So where to go from here? The report also notes that twelfth-grade students who write four to five pages a week score ten points higher than those who write just one page a week. Encouraging students to put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) is a start."
Tim Cooper

TEDxGeorgiaTech - Mark Guzdial - 21st Century Literacy includes Computing for Everyone ... - 16 views

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    Interesting outlook on why teaching computer science is applicable and needed for everyone. Guzdial does a lot of work with Squeak (which is a forerunner of Scratch).
Marc Patton

SIAM: Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics - 0 views

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    Welcome to SIAM! Applied mathematics, in partnership with computational science, is essential in solving many real-world problems. Our mission is to build cooperation between mathematics and the worlds of science and technology through our publications, research, and community.
Tony Baldasaro

As Classrooms Go Digital, Textbooks May Become History - NYTimes.com - 1 views

  • And throughout the district, a Beyond Textbooks initiative encourages teachers to create — and share — lessons
    • Tony Baldasaro
       
      Makes me wonder of textbooks inhibit collaboration by teachers.
  • digitally nimble
  • And they think of knowledge as infinite
    • Tony Baldasaro
       
      This is a powerful quote. Thinking back to my schooling, it could probably be said that I thought of knowledge as finite, only limited to what my teacher and textbook said.
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  • With California in dire straits, the governor hopes free textbooks could save hundreds of millions of dollars a year.
    • Tony Baldasaro
       
      Too bad it took an economic crises to spur this movement.
  • “I don’t believe that charters and vouchers are the threat to schools in Orange County,” he said. “What’s a threat is the digital world — that someone’s going to put together brilliant $200 courses in French, in geometry by the best teachers in the world.”
    • Tony Baldasaro
       
      Wow! He is absolutely right on. Why take a course with based on a rigid time and place when one can learn at a place and pace that makes sense to them?
  • “We believe that the world is going digital, but the jury’s still out on how this will evolve,” said Wendy Spiegel, a Pearson spokeswoman. “We’re agnostic, so we’ll provide digital, we’ll provide print, and we’ll see what our customers want.”
    • Tony Baldasaro
       
      This is where I think textbooks companies need to lead. Customers typically only want more of the same, more of what has worked in the past, more of what has a track record. They dont' necessarily think beyond and/or have the luxury of being visionaries.
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    At Empire High School in Vail, Ariz., students use computers provided by the school to get their lessons, do their homework and hear podcasts of their teachers' science lectures. Down the road, at Cienega High School, students who own laptops can register for "digital sections" of several English, history and science classes. And throughout the district, a Beyond Textbooks initiative encourages teachers to create - and share - lessons that incorporate their own PowerPoint presentations, along with videos and research materials they find by sifting through reliable Internet sites.
Siri Anderson

Primers - The Center for Innovative Research in Cyberlearning (CIRCL) - 14 views

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    Useful resources on varied topics of importance today. Computational thinking, data science, citizen science etc.
Roland Gesthuizen

Engineering the Perfect Poem by Using the Vocabulary of STEM - ReadWriteThink - 7 views

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    "Engineering is the "silent E" in STEM subject areas. While science, mathematics, and technology are often topics of content area lessons, engineering is often ignored. However, engineering is inclusive of all STEM subjects because engineers use science, mathematics, and technology to solve problems. Engineering careers are diverse, spanning many different technologies and disciplines, such as agricultural engineering, aerospace engineering, computer engineering, mechanical engineering, and chemical engineering."
Christian King

Activities | Computer Science Unplugged - 24 views

  • Each Unplugged activity is available to download in PDF format, with full instructions and worksheets. Background sections explain the significance of each activity to computer science, and answers are provided for all problems. All you need for most of these activities are curiousity and enthusiasm. There are photos and videos showing some of the activities in action, and we've collected links to other useful resources
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    Great IT ideas for when the school network inevitably goes down..
anonymous

15+ Ways of Teaching Every Student to Code (Even Without a Computer) | Edutopia - 82 views

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    Computer Science Education Week is Dec 9-15.
Kris Cody

The Reading Brain in the Digital Age: The Science of Paper versus Screens: Scientific A... - 103 views

  • prevented them from zooming out to see a neighborhood, state or country
    • Monica Williams-Mitchell
       
      This explains, in real terms, why I've had so much struggle with online reading! Very interesting article.
  • Because of these preferences—and because getting away from multipurpose screens improves concentration—people consistently say that when they really want to dive into a text, they read it on paper
    • Kris Cody
       
      This is backed up by a recent article: Faris, Michael J., and Stuart A. Selber. "E-Book Issues In Composition: A Partial Assessment And Perspective For Teachers." Composition Forum 24.(2011): ERIC. Web. 31 Mar. 2013.
  • Surveys and consumer reports also suggest that the sensory experiences typically associated with reading—especially tactile experiences—matter to people more than one might assume.
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  • When reading a paper book, one can feel the paper and ink and smooth or fold a page with one's fingers; the pages make a distinctive sound when turned; and underlining or highlighting a sentence with ink permanently alters the paper's chemistry.
  • discernible size, shape and weight.
  • Although many old and recent studies conclude that people understand what they read on paper more thoroughly than what they read on screens, the differences are often small. Some experiments, however, suggest that researchers should look not just at immediate reading comprehension, but also at long-term memory.
  • When taking the quiz, volunteers who had read study material on a monitor relied much more on remembering than on knowing, whereas students who read on paper depended equally on remembering and knowing.
  • E-ink is easy on the eyes because it reflects ambient light just like a paper book, but computer screens, smartphones and tablets like the iPad shine light directly into people's faces.
  • the American Optometric Association officially recognizes computer vision syndrome.
  • People who took the test on a computer scored lower and reported higher levels of stress and tiredness than people who completed it on paper.
  • Although people in both groups performed equally well on the READ test, those who had to scroll through the continuous text did not do as well on the attention and working-memory tests.
  • Subconsciously, many people may think of reading on a computer or tablet as a less serious affair than reading on paper. Based on a detailed 2005 survey of 113 people in northern California, Ziming Liu of San Jose State University concluded that people reading on screens take a lot of shortcuts—they spend more time browsing, scanning and hunting for keywords compared with people reading on paper, and are more likely to read a document once, and only once.
  • When reading on screens, people seem less inclined to engage in what psychologists call metacognitive learning regulation—strategies such as setting specific goals, rereading difficult sections and checking how much one has understood along the way
  • Perhaps she and her peers will grow up without the subtle bias against screens that seems to lurk in the minds of older generations.
  • They think of using an e-book, not owning an e-book,"
  • Participants in her studies say that when they really like an electronic book, they go out and get the paper version.
  • When it comes to intensively reading long pieces of plain text, paper and ink may still have the advantage. But text is not the only way to read.
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    it is difficult to see any one passage in the context of the entire text.
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    it is difficult to see any one passage in the context of the entire text.
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