High School Computer Science Courses Research Articles

МЕТОДИКА СМЕШАННОГО ОБУЧЕНИЯ ШКОЛЬНОМУ КУРСУ ИНФОРМАТИКИ С ПРИМЕНЕНИЕМ ПОДХОДА CLIL

The article is devoted to the problem of optimizing the teaching of a Computer Science course in high school and is aimed at demonstrating the methodology for using blended learning technology in a school Computer Science course using the CLIL approach. A number of blended learning models were studied and the Flipped Classroom model was chosen for our research work. According to the “Flipped Classroom” model, students learn new material and complete assignments using the Internet at home, consolidate and practice the material they have covered during face-to-face learning in the classroom. In addition, given that there is currently a strong demand for a CLIL approach based on a trilingual policy aimed at mastering Kazakh, Russian and English, in a blended learning environment there are opportunities to apply the CLIL approach in a high school computer science course. The article shows the stages of CLIL classes, the actions in which are revealed using specific examples. The results of the study led to the conclusion that the use of two different tools in a school Computer Science course, consisting of the Flipped Classroom and CLIL methods used in educational activities, will help cover voluminous material in English, create conditions for independent study, and facilitate the process of monitoring knowledge for the teacher students and get students interested in learning the subject.

Computer Science for All? The Impact of High School Computer Science Courses on College Majors and Earnings

Computer Science for All? The Impact of High School Computer Science Courses on College Majors and Earnings

Student Agency in a High School Computer Science Course

This study explores student agency in the context of a culturally authentic computer science (CS) curriculum implemented in an introductory CS course in two high schools. Drawing on focus group and interview data, the study utilizes qualitative research methods to examine how students exercise critical agency as they engage in the course and how the curriculum supports student agency. Findings suggest three ways in which the curriculum served as a context for student agency: (1) gaining CS knowledge and skills that students then apply to address real-world needs and problems, (2) creating opportunities to “try-on” or improvise new identities and/or envision “future selves” in CS, and (3) engaging in personally relevant project work that leverages assets students brought to their experience with the curriculum. Implications for CS education research and practice are discussed.

Exploring high school computer science course teachers’ instructional design processes for improving students’ “computational thinking” skills

The importance of developing individuals’ computational thinking (CT) skills has given rise to many practices and research and development initiatives. Although there is a considerable volume of research on improving students’ CT skills, remarkably little is known about teachers’ design work to improve students’ CT skills. This multiple case study aimed to explore high school computer science teachers’ instructional design (ID) process. Data were collected through interviews, lesson plans, and classroom observations from three K-12 cases. The results showed that teachers’ ID processes had both similarities; including the design steps, the analysis step predominance, and the interaction intensity between the stages, and differences; included the number of interactions and the connections within the stages. Moreover, teachers’ beliefs about teaching and learning CT affected ID process.

Are Teachers and Schools Ready to Accept Computer Science as a Graduation Requirement?

Recent policies across the United States support rigorous high school computer science courses acting as flex credit courses. This allows the courses to count as graduation requirements in lieu of traditional mathematics or science courses. In this study, 457 teachers in high schools that had not yet adopted flex credit policies indicated school readiness and personal beliefs regarding counting computer science as a mathematics or science requirement. Tangible first-order barriers (e.g., appropriate curriculum) were greater hurdles than intrinsic second-order barriers (e.g., beliefs). Other notable findings included viewing computer science counting as a mathematics requirement more favorably than as a science requirement; science teachers being least positive about computer science as a core requirement; and school socioeconomic status and enrollment size not being correlated to perceptions.

The development and implementation of a context-based curricular framework for computer science education in high schools

In this paper, we describe a computer science curricular framework for creating innovative, four-year computer science programs for high school computer science courses. Based on a suggested set of great principles of computing by Peter Denning, the framework is structured as a stack of four curricular layers. The result is a framework design that provides a high degree of curricular and pedagogical flexibility, particularly suited for the rapidly changing discipline of computer science. This report describes the computer science curricular framework, the implementation of the framework and the deployment of a four-year curriculum from the implemented framework. Initial classroom experiences are reported.

Fertile Zones of Cultural Encounter in Computer Science Education

We explain certain learning difficulties in computer science education as resulting from a clash between the students' culture as computer users and the professional computing culture. We propose the concept of fertile zones of cultural encounter as a way of overcoming these learning difficulties. This pedagogical approach aims to bridge the gap between cultures by designing interventions that are appreciated by members of both cultures, yet also guide the student to engage in the practices of the professional culture. The learning difficulties are demonstrated by a detailed analysis of episodes taken from an advanced high school computer science course in concurrency. We show that fertile zones of cultural encounter can be successful in significantly improving learning of this subject. We are indebted to Sarah Pollack for her insightful comments on this article. We would like to thank the editor and the reviewers for their extensive comments that contributed materially to improving the article.