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1. Toward Scientific Evidence Standards in Empirical Computer Science

   Timothy Kluthe, Brett A. (March 2023, Dagstuhl reports)

   Many scientific fields of study use formally established evidence standards during the peer review and evaluation process, such as Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) in medical research, the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) used in education in the United States, or the APA Journal Article Reporting Standards (JARS) in psychology. The basis for these standards is community agreement on what to report in empirical studies. Such standards achieve two key goals. First, they make it easier to compare studies, facilitating replications, through transparent reporting and sharing of data, which can provide confidence that multiple research teams can obtain the same results. Second, they establish community agreement on how to report on and evaluate studies using different methodologies. The discipline of computer science does not have formalized evidence standards, even for major conferences or journals. This Dagstuhl Seminar has three primary objectives: 1. To establish a process for creating or adopting an existing evidence standard for empirical research in computer science. 2. To build a community of scholars that can discuss what a general standard should include. 3. To kickstart the discussion with scholars from software engineering, human-computer interac- tion, and computer science education. In order to better discuss and understand the implications of such standards across several empirical subfields of computer science and to facilitate adoption, we brought together participants from a range of backgrounds; including academia and industry, software engineering, computer- human interaction and computer science education, as well as representatives from several prominent journals. 

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2. Comparing Learning Taxonomies With Computer Science K-12 Standards

   https://doi.org/10.3102/2190401  

   Smith, Julie; Koressel, Jacob; de_Jesús, Sofía; Kmoch, Joe; Twarek, Bryan (January 2025, AERA)

   There is a need to analyze state computer science standards to determine their cognitive complexity and alignment across grades. However, due to the recency of these standards, there is very little research on the topic, including the use of various educational taxonomies as analysis tools. The purpose of this paper is to answer the question, How do Bloom’s Revised and the SOLO taxonomies compare in their analysis of computer science standards? We categorized state CS standards according to their level in Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy and the SOLO taxonomy. Analyzing state CS standards using the Bloom’s or using the SOLO taxonomy produces wide areas of agreement but also some differences that might be important in various use cases, such as aligning standards across grade levels or determining whether a standard addresses a higher-order thinking skill. 

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3. K-12 Computer Science Standards Comparison Report: Examining the Similarities and Differences in State-Adopted K-12 Computer Science Standards and the CSTA K-12 Standards, Revised 2017

   Twarek, Bryan; Koressel, Jacob; McGill, Monica; Smith, Julie (December 2024, Computer Science Teachers Association)

   This report examines the similarities and differences between state-adopted K-12 CS standards and the 2017 CSTA K-12 Standards. This analysis includes basic information about the standards (such as counts by state and level) and their cognitive complexity, as well as more detailed information about their relationship to the CSTA standards. 

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4. Reimagining Standards for Computer Science Education for Primary and Secondary Schools

   https://doi.org/10.1145/3677619.3678121  

   Koressel, Jacob; Twarek, Bryan; Smith, Julie; McGill, Monica (September 2024, ACM)

   The Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA) K-12 Standards were last updated in 2017, when only six states in the United States had adopted learning standards for primary and secondary education (K-12) computer science. Fast forward to 2024, and 41 states now have K-12 CS standards (and one has high school CS standards only). In preparation for writing an updated set of standards, CSTA is engaging in three stages of work: reimagining CS for high school students, conducting a crosswalk of K-12 CS standards across all 50 states compared to the CSTA standards (2017), and engaging in the technical process of defining final standards content via research and revision. All three stages draw significantly from the community of practitioners, researchers, curriculum designers, postsecondary faculty, and other interested parties. They also draw significantly from research published since the last revision to take into account the current evidence on learning computer science. In this poster, we describe our process for building the groundwork of knowledge for revising the standards, share highlights of the results to date, and describe how this data will be used to inform the upcoming revision of the CSTA standards. 

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5. Coaching Teachers to Teach Computer Science with Equity-focused Teacher Standards

   https://doi.org/10.1145/3677619.3678119  

   Rosato, Jennifer; Thigpen, Laycee; Brunson, Fatima; Tise, Joe; McGill, Monica (September 2024, ACM)

   Problem. Currently, state- and district-level policies in the United States call for teachers to be qualified to teach computing in K-12 classrooms. Recognizing that equity-focused practices are key to reaching all students in computing and leveraging a researcher-practitioner partnership (RPP), we piloted an intervention designed to provide one-on-one coaching to teachers. Research Question. Our research questions for this project were: 1) What impact does CS coaching have on teacher capacity to implement equitable teaching practices? and 2) What, if any, changes to teacher practice are sustained during and after the CS coaching process? Methodology. Our mixed-methods study leveraged three primary forms of data from teachers who were coached (coachees) and teachers providing coaching (coaches). These included pre- and post-surveys, coaching logs, and self-reflection checklists. Findings. Participants reported use of high-impact instructional design and classroom practices increased significantly from pre- to post-intervention. Their abilities to discuss topics of identity and plan activities that use evidence-based, CS-specific teaching strategies saw the most dramatic increase from pre- to post-intervention. Implications. Coaching may be an impactful way to develop teacher’s use of equitable teaching practices. 

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