FOUNDATION
CULTURE + PROCESS
We firmly believe that ECS teachers and students are part of a community where all learners have a voice and can make valuable contributions to the learning of the whole group. Our three strands don’t just apply to the curriculum: they are woven throughout all of the support provided to our teacher community.
CS CONCEPTS
We seek to develop teachers’ confidence in the course materials and help them feel able to offer their students an in-depth understanding of what makes Computer Science a meaningful field of study.
INQUIRY
Teacher learning involves many opportunities for collaboration and small group learning and presentations to model the types of experiences that we hope students will experience as ECS is implemented at school sites.
EQUITY
We seek to provide professional development opportunities that are accessible to teachers who don’t typically have access or who teach students who typically encounter barriers to quality computer science education.
REINFORCE
As we have seen in ongoing research, effective teacher learning requires multiple professional development sessions over an extended period of time. This allows for more time for reinforcing concepts during each session and provides time for practice and reflection between sessions.
APPLY
Our professional development sessions are very hands-on! Computer science instruction is modeled through role playing, jigsawing activities, pair and small-group collaboration, structured tinkering, multiple solutions, utilizing manipulatives, and simulations.
GROW + REFLECT
An important part of our professional development experience is the ongoing encouragement and opportunity to grow and reflect as a computer science teacher. We believe this focus helps develop educators who are aware of how their classroom can influence the direction of the fields of both computer science and education, and who are empowered to change these fields for the better.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT MAP
Summer 1
Prior to implementation, this week-long summer institute introduces the instructional philosophy and content from the early units.
THE INSTRUCTIONAL PHILOSOPHY: The 3 Strands
UNIT 1:
Human Computer Interaction
Quarterly PDs
During the school year, quarterly PDs focus on remaining units and the three strands.
QUARTER 1
UNIT 2:
Problem Solving
QUARTER 2
UNIT 3:
Programming
QUARTER 3
UNIT 4:
Data & Computing
QUARTER 4
UNIT 5:
Robotics
Summer 2
GROW + REFLECT
The summer after a year of teaching ECS, teachers attend our week-long summer institute again, deepening their understanding of content and pedagogy.
LEARN
They are more able to focus on student learning: how to improve it, assess it, and learn from it.
OBSERVE
They can listen and relate to others’ classroom teaching experiences and learn from their peers.
SHARE
They reflect on and offer their experiences to first-year ECS teachers and help build a learning community.