Unit 3: Teaching Computer Science in YOUR School

Learning Objectives

At the end of this unit, learners will be able to:

Develop a district wide plan for implementing the computer science and digital literacy curriculum K-12 while following NYS's standards.
1. Evaluate the effectiveness of create a piece-wise technique for assessing if all the standards are met in courses alredy offered in each school.
Evaluate the effectiveness of creating a designated computer science course designed to meet each of the standards.

Lesson 1: Developing a District-Wide Implementation Plan

Developing a district-wide implementation plan for making sure these standards are being met can be challenging when working independently or in a small group. To properly and adequately implement these standards, there needs to be open communication among all stakeholders including students, teachers, administrators, guidance counselors, and parents.

CAPE Framework

Evaluating the CAPE Framework (2021)[1], provides educators, researchers, practitioners, and policymakers with a lens through which they can examine multiple, interdependent components of CS education, asking questions about how inequities at each level might impact outcomes at subsequent levels. This model will look different at each school and district. It is the goal of educators and administrators to utilize this system to assess the limitations of implementing computer science in their district.

The framework addresses four key components of CS education: Capacity for, Access to, Participation in, and Experiences of CS education (CAPE). The pyramid depicted here illustrates how the four components of the framework work progressively, building and relying on the previous component. If students are to have good experiences learning CS, they must first participate in CS courses and programs.

SCRIPT

One of the most resourceful ways to start having open conversations about computer science can be done by using the SCRIPT program. SCRIPT[2] stands for the

Strategic CSforALL Resource & Implementation Planning Tool. It is a framework to guide teams of district administrators, school leaders, and educators through a series of collaborative visioning, self- assessment and goal-setting exercises to create or expand upon a computer science education implementation plan for their students.

School districts and other local education organizations are the unit of change toward creating rigorous, inclusive and sustainable K-12 computer science education. According to their website, the SCRIPT supports systems-level change by addressing five key areas: (1) Leadership, (2) Teacher Capacity and Development, (3) Curriculum and Materials Selection and Refinement, (4) Partners, and (5) Community.

CS Visions[3], a program developed by CSforAll, highlights the importance of core values when it comes to computer science education. Understanding different reasons for teaching computer science isn’t just important so that we can get other people to care about CS, they should also shape what computer science education efforts look like - who gets opportunities to learn, what kinds of things get taught and in what ways. Our values should be expressed in our practice. Below is a set of conversation cards than can be helpful when having these conversations with stakeholders

At the end of these conversations, two questions remain - (1) How are we going to teach all of these standards? and (2) Who is going to teach them?

Lesson 1a: Piece-wise Technique

One of the advantages of several strands of the CSDF standards is its adaptability to be taught in various other content areas. Using this technique would allow other subject teachers, such as English, History, Art, and Science, to meet various standards in their existing curriculum. Advantages of this method of implementation include little movement of student schedules and increased collaboration between content areas. While this technique can seem great on the front end, we are still challenged with finding the appropriate places to teach every single standard. Below is a document from NYSED with various examples of how standards can be met in exisiting courses. Unpacking the standards[4] is a crucial first step to understanding what can be taught where.

Lesson 1b: Creating a CS Course

One of the best ways we can guarantee all of the CSDF standards are being met at each gradeband is to create a designated computer science or technology course. Fortunately, these courses do not need to be created from scratch and there are many resources for finding curriculum. Existing curriculum that meets the NYS CSDF learning standards includes the following:

Discovering Computer Science (https://sites.google.com/siena.edu/sienacsforall/supported-cs-cou rses?authuser=0) - a high school credit bearing course developed by the Siena College Computer Science Department. It currently meets all of the 9-12 standards for high school students.
Nearpod's 21st Century Readiness Program (https://news.nearpod.com/pdf/Nearpod+Alignment+f or+NYS+Computer+Science+and+Digital+Fluency+(K-12).pdf) - developed to help teachers implement the standards, by downloading and accessing standards-aligned computer science and digital ﬂuency content that empowers students to use technology safely, ethically, and effectively in both classroom and real-world settings.
Ellipsis Education (https://ellipsiseducation.com/united-states/new-york) - provides full-year K-12 computer science curriculum that aligns with the NYSED computer science standards. The curriculum offers grade level differentiated learning pathways, aligns with all state and national computer science standards, and is continually updated to reﬂect changes in computer science. These can be customized to your district or school needs.
CSForAll, NYC Public Schools (https://blueprint.cs4all.nyc/curriculum) - Curriculum created and supported by the CS Education Team of New York City or one of their partners.

In New York State, it is important to be sure that new computer science courses are appropriately coded with the correct BEDS/SIRS Codes[5] for documentation of the district teaching a computer science course.

Lesson 2: How do I become CS certefied?

Now that we have the courses to teach, who is going to teach them? In other words, where do we get certified computer science educators to teach these standards to students? As with many of the certificates in other subject areas, individuals who seek an initial certificate in computer science other than the SOCE, the following pathways are available[6]:

Approved program pathway: an individual pursuing a bachelor’s degree in an educator preparation program leading to an initial certiﬁcate in computer science or a master’s degree in an educator preparation program leading to an initial computer science certiﬁcate.
Individual evaluation pathway: an individual with a bachelor’s degree or higher and at least 12 credits of coursework in computer science may pursue this pathway upon meeting pedagogy and student teaching requirements.
Industry experience: individuals who already have a bachelor’s degree or higher and also have had three or more years of experience working in a position that requires the skills of a computer scientist may pursue this pathway and would need to complete speciﬁc pedagogical coursework.
Additional certiﬁcate pathway: individuals who already hold a teaching certiﬁcate may pursue an additional certiﬁcate in computer science by meeting speciﬁc computer science coursework.
- In order to be certiﬁed to teach computer science, current certiﬁed teachers, including those who hold initial, professional, or permanant ceritiﬁcation, must earn a total of 12 credit hours in the computer science content area.

Since the adoption of the CSDF standards in 2018, many New York State colleges have developed certification programs in this subject area. Below is a short list of accredited programs that work closely with pre-service teachers, as well as current certified teachers, to earn credits in computer science:

Siena College (https://sites.google.com/siena.edu/sienacsforall/cs-teacher-certiﬁcation)
University of Buffalo (https://ed.buffalo.edu/news-events/news.host.html/content/shared/university/ news/ub-reporter-articles/stories/2024/07/computer-science-ed-program.detail.html)
Hunter College (https://education.hunter.cuny.edu/admissions/graduate-programs/computer-scien ce-math-stem/computer-science-education/)

For a list of frequently asked questions, check out this document from NYSED.

✏Self-Assessment: CAPE Framework

⭐ Activity/Self-Assessment: Reflect on your district or school's plan for implementing the Computer Science and Digital Fluency learning standards. Use this Google Form (https://forms.gle/tmzeZK31GogRYaH77) to self-assess where you are and where you need to be moving forward. A copy of your responses will be emailed to you so you can take it back to your implementation team.

References

Fletcher, C.L., Warner, J.R. (2021, February). CAPE: A Framework for Assessing Equity throughout the Computer Science Education Ecosystem. Communications of the ACM, 64(2), 23- 25. doi:10.1145/3442373 (https://ecepalliance.org/resources/models/cape/)
Script program. CSforALL. (2022). (https://www.csforall.org/projects_and_programs/script/)
CSVisions framework. CSforALL. (2022). (https://www.csforall.org/projects_and_programs/script/)
Unpacking the standards. (n.d.). CSForNY. (https://sites.google.com/watertowncsd.org/csforny/sta ndards-unpacking?authuser=0)
New York State Education Department. (2021). SIRS Codes. (https://www.highered.nysed.gov/tcer t/certiﬁcate/computer-sci-soce-courses%20(2).xlsx)
NYSUT research and educational services. (2023). Fact sheet 23-5: Teacher certiﬁcation in computer science. (https://www.nysut.org/resources/all-listing/research/fact-sheets/fact-sheet-certi ﬁcation-in-computer-science#pathway)