Competency #1: Understanding K–12 CS

The first AEA module — and thinking about what computer science actually is.

Summary

In this activity you will complete the first of four modules prepared by the state of Iowa Board of Education and Iowa's AEAs to help teachers better understand CS and how to apply the CS Framework and Standards when designing lessons for students. [My big thank you to the state of Iowa for making these available for use in our program.]

Your activities for this Competency are:

Creating an Account

You will need an account on the AEA Learning Online platform. Some of you may already have accounts through previous PD; others will need to create one.

Please go to https://training.aealearningonline.org and follow the instructions to log in to your existing account or create a new one.

Important: If you click on the wrong set of links when entering this module, you may be prompted to pay for the training. You should be able to complete this module for free as part of our course. Please reach out to me if you have trouble accessing the materials at no cost.

Module #1

For this activity please complete the following module:

Deliverable, Part 1 — Module Reflections

As you work through the module, take notes on what you experience. You will also be asked to complete Reflection Journal Activities at several points in the module; make sure you engage with those as they come up.

When you are done, word process your responses to the following questions:

  1. What did you write for each of the in-module Reflection Journal Activities?
    • Reflection #1 — How has computer science affected you already today? Thinking a little deeper about one of the items you mentioned in the previous answer, identify the problem (or inefficiency) and discuss how technology was used to make it possible or better/easier/faster.
    • Reflection #2 — Do you ask your students to engage in computational thinking already? If so, in what ways? If not, where might you include computational thinking in your instruction?
    • Reflection #3 — In your journal, describe how your current context does or does not reflect the information from the video and statistics on the previous pages of the module.
  2. What was the main point of this training module?
  3. How did this material fit in with what you have learned in your CSEd program so far?
  4. Identify and discuss at least one item or topic in the training that added to what you had previously learned. How did it improve your knowledge?
  5. Identify and discuss at least one item or topic in the training that was a completely new idea for you. How did it improve your knowledge?

Deliverable, Part 2 — What is Computer Science?

On its own, this is a fairly simple question that many sources answer in two or three sentences. I am looking for something more substantial, so let me reframe it:

Suppose your principal or superintendent asked you to explain Computer Science to the school board. Specifically, you need to help this non-technical audience understand (a) what computer science is as a field and (b) how it does — or perhaps should — fit into K–12 education, possibly including your own district. What would you say?

Please draw on materials from the AEA online module as part of your response. I am looking for a single, well-crafted reflection essay. A high-quality response will likely run 600–1000 words or more. [NOTE: I genuinely dislike prescribing word counts and will not be counting words when I evaluate your work. But a word range is the clearest way I have to signal the depth and scale I am expecting here.]

Deliverable, Part 3 — Why Include CS in K–12 Education?

"Because the state of Iowa has mandated it" is not an acceptable answer. Why might they have done so?

You are welcome to draw on talking points from our required readings, but I encourage you to go further by connecting to your own classroom and to what you have been learning in this program. There are many resources beyond what we have assembled here that can help teachers, administrators, students, and parents understand why CS belongs in K–12 education; feel free to bring those in as well.

A response that earns a 3 will likely run several hundred words and be carefully argued. One that earns a 4 will be well crafted and make use of specific examples and references.

Evaluation