skip to main content
US FlagAn official website of the United States government
dot gov icon
Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
https lock icon
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( lock ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Explore Research Products in the PAR
It may take a few hours for recently added research products to appear in PAR search results.


  • NSF Public Access
  • Search Results
  • Professional knowledge building within an elementary teacher professional development experience on computational thinking in science education
Title: Professional knowledge building within an elementary teacher professional development experience on computational thinking in science education
Abstract. We investigated teacher learning within a professional development (PD) workshop series on computational thinking (CT) for elementary-level mentor teachers. The purpose of the PD was to prepare mentor teachers to support preservice teachers in integrating CT into their classroom practice, toward the broader goal of advancing CT for all in the early grades. We examined the ways in which participants collaboratively built on existing professional knowledge as they engaged in professional learning activities designed to introduce CT and related pedagogies for elementary science education. Our data sources were field notes, artifacts, drawings, written reflections, and focus group interviews. We describe how participants developed new understandings of CT integration and made connections to existing professional knowledge of their students, their curriculum, and their school contexts. We discuss implications for teacher learning and PD design relevant to CT, and make recommendations for future research.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
1639891
PAR ID:
10082426
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ;
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Journal of technology and teacher education
Volume:
26
Issue:
3
ISSN:
1059-7069
Page Range / eLocation ID:
411-435
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
More Like this
  1. ; ; ; ; ; (, Proceedings of the Annual SIGCSE Conference on Innovation and Technology in Computer Science Education)
    In this poster, we present our efforts to engage elementary teachers with learning trajectories as a tool for developing both their own and their students’ comprehension of computational think-ing (CT) and strategies for integrating CT learning in their class-room. Eleven teachers, who voluntarily joined a teacher professional development (PD) program to develop teacher leaders for CT integration in the elementary context, attended a one-day PD session aimed at reviewing their knowledge of CT, participating in CT-infused lessons, and engaging with CT learning trajectories. Over the next year, teachers will participate in monthly virtual PD to continue to grow both their CT content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge. Our goal is to develop these teachers as teacher leaders who will support others as they integrate CT. This poster will show our current progress on CT learning trajectories and teacher leaders’ responses to the tool. 
    more » « less
  2. ; ; ; ; ; (, Proceedings of the 55th ACM Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education)
    In this poster, we present our efforts to engage elementary teachers with learning trajectories as a tool for developing both their own and their students’ comprehension of computational thinking (CT) and strategies for integrating CT learning in their classroom. Eleven teachers, who voluntarily joined a teacher professional development (PD) program to develop teacher leaders for CT integration in the elementary context, attended a one-day PD session aimed at reviewing their knowledge of CT, participating in CT-infused lessons, and engaging with CT learning trajectories. Over the next year, teachers will participate in monthly virtual PD to continue to grow both their CT content knowledge and pedagogical knowledge. Our goal is to develop these teachers as teacher leaders who will support others as they integrate CT. This poster will show our current progress on CT learning trajectories and teacher leaders’ responses to the tool. 
    more » « less
  3. ; ; ; ; (, Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE))
    The purpose of this paper is to explain how we adapted our novel 3C PD Model (Code, Connect, and Create) for teacher professional development (PD) around computational thinking (CT) integration for elementary teachers. We will share PD design choices that support early childhood and elementary teachers in learning about CT knowledge, skills, and dispositions and making content connections to CT. We will also detail how we have helped teachers begin planning for CT-integrated lesson implementation. We will share empirical data from a post-PD survey that includes teacher reflections on their participation in the 3C PD Model. We conclude by making recommendations and offering implications for PK-5 PD providers that aim to increase teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) around CT and integration. 
    more » « less
  4. ; ; ; ; ; (, Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference)
    Abstract. We investigated preservice teachers’ (PSTs) (N=13) experiences in a science teaching inquiry group professional learning experience on integrating computational thinking (CT) into elementary science. A subgroup of PSTs (n=6) participated alongside their mentor teachers. The others (n=7) participated independently. Our research question was: To what extent, if any, did participating in a professional learning experience on CT along with their mentor teachers appear to enhance PSTs’ learning and practice related to CT integration? We analyzed evaluation feedback, interviews, participant-developed lesson plans, surveys, and attendance data. Findings suggested that participants in both groups reacted positively to the learning experience’s content and approach, and expressed similar perceptions of their CT integration knowledge. PSTs participating with their mentor teachers felt slightly more successful in their CT integration efforts, and perceived CT integration as more feasible in their teaching contexts. However, differences between the groups were minimal. We also noted possible of influence of PSTs’ perceptions of the districts in which they were teaching. Our findings underscore the importance of PSTs’ perceptions of their teaching contexts when bringing a new innovation to the classroom - namely, perceptions of their mentors and curricula as supportive of the innovation. Through this ongoing work, we seek to identify empirically-supported strategies for preparing PSTs to integrate CT into their future classrooms. 
    more » « less
  5. ; ; ; ; (, Proceedings of Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference)
    Teachers’ lack of computer science (CS) content knowledge and limited opportunities to incorporate CS in existing curricula pose unique challenges at the elementary level. Despite the crucial role of professional development (PD) in preparing elementary school teachers to integrate CS in classroom instruction, there is little research documenting PD programs that focus on integration in literacy and mathematics when compared to other subject areas. In this work, we present a PD program that integrates CS with disciplinary content to support teachers as they integrate CS with literacy and mathematics in elementary school classrooms. Using data from multiple sources, we present findings from two case studies to examine the impact of the PD on teachers’ integration of CS with content in lesson planning and implementation. Findings have implications related to the integration of CS in elementary school and teacher professional development. 
    more » « less
  • Citation Formats
  • MLA
  • APA
  • Chicago
  • BibTeX
  • Save / Share this Record
  • Send to Email