Welcome to CS Week 2018!

Computer Science week is almost in full swing for its 9th year!

It runs from December 3rd-9th. For those of you who may not know, we celebrate CS Week at this time in honor of Admiral Grace Murray Hopper who was a computing pioneer (December 9, 1906 was her birthday!).

                       

What does this all mean for teachers?
It’s a time to celebrate and get your students involved with computer science! Don’t worry! It sounds more intimidating than it really is and I’d be glad to walk you through the process!

 

What is computer science and why should we teach it?
Computer science is everywhere and a part of almost everything we do! From browsing the web, to posting on Facebook, to ordering from our favorite websites, and playing Fortnite. But, the creator of Code.org can probably answer these questions better than me! Here is his speech from a Tedx event.

 

To summarize what Hadi had to say:
Computer science is more than just coding. We need to think about the future of our society and teaching our students computer science better prepares them for their future. We teach students about math, but not all of them become mathematicians, we teach them about biology, but not all of them become biologists. They learn these things to become well rounded.  

 

Only 35% of schools in the US are teaching computer science and there are currently about 500,000 job openings in this field (with that number steadily rising every year)(“What’s Wrong With This Picture”, 2018). And don’t even get me started on the lack of women in computer science (girls only represent 18% of undergraduate students in computer science as opposed to the 40% that are in the other sciences) (“Girls in IT”, 2018). Why then, would we not teach them about the very thing that is so prevalent in our lives and can open up opportunities for their future?

 

Are you convinced?

Ready to dive in head first?

 

Let’s get started with some basics!

 

For Computer Science Week, all we ask is that you spend at least an hour with your students doing something related to coding (even though we know there is more to computer science than just coding!). Code.org has several great resources to get started.

 

Let’s walk through the process!

 

What to do to prepare:

• Sign up to host an hour of code at https://hourofcode.com/us#join.
• Preview the videos and tutorials to see which lessons would be best for your students. Get the link that you will share with the students.
• If you don’t have access to devices, there are also lessons that you can use. “Unplugged Lessons” don’t require a device and have minimal prep work required.

 

What to do during:

• Start by showing students this video. and check out some of the other cool videos that Code.org has on their YouTube channel (subscribe!).
• Give students some information about computer science. Here are 2 great information sheets: 
  What is CS?
  CS Intro
• Share the link to the lesson/tutorial (Google Classroom can help!)
• Let students work in pairs to solve coding errors.
• Let students work at their own pace for an hour.
• Supervise and help students as necessary, but have the students ask 3 other classmates for help before they come to you
• If a student finishes early, they can go to another lesson/tutorial or help other classmates
• When students finish they will receive a completion certificate that you can print out if desired. You can always pre-print these and write in student names.
  

THERE'S MORE!

Computer Science Week is only one week out of the whole year and we don’t need to wait till next year to teach more computer science. There is a lot we can keep doing to keep the party going!

 

• Continue using code.org, as they have several courses and other tutorials that the students can use (Elementary, Middle, and High school)
• Try a different coding site like Made with Code, Scratch, Scratch Jr.,
• Elementary teachers can sign up for a free PD with code.org (you get lots of swag!) https://code.org/professional-development-workshops
• Sign up to get the CS First Google Starter kit and offer an after school club https://csfirst.withgoogle.com/en/home
• Get robots for your class or after school club to use for coding and competitions http://hourofcode.makewonder.com/
• Invite a tech industry volunteer to visit your classroom and talk to your students about careers in Computer Science https://code.org/volunteer/local

 

When you give students the opportunity to code you are not only increasing their problem solving and critical thinking skills but you are also preparing them for a successful future. So, join the party and get your students involved with CS!

 

 

 

References:

Girls in IT: The Facts. (2018). National Center for Women & Information Technology. Retrieved 27 November 2018, from https://www.ncwit.org/resources/girls-it-facts.

What's wrong with this picture?. (2018). CSEd Week. Retrieved 27 November 2018, from https://csedweek.org/promote.