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The dearth of women and people of color in the field of computer science is a well-documented phenomenon. Following Obama's 2016 declaration of the need for a nationwide CS for All movement in the US, educators, school districts, states and the US-based National Science Foundation have responded with an explosion of activity directed at developing computer science learning opportunities in K-12 settings. A major component of this effort is the creation of equitable CS learning opportunities for underrepresented populations. As a result, there exists a strong need for educational research on the development of equity-based theory and practice in CS education. This poster session reports on a work-in-progress study that uses a case study approach to engage twenty in-service elementary school teachers in reflecting on issues of equity in CS education as part of a three-day CS professional development workshop. Our work is unfolding in the context of a four-year university/district research practice partnership in a mid-sized city in the Northeastern United States. Teachers in our project are working to co-design integrated CS curriculum units for K-5 classrooms. We developed four case studies, drawn from the first year of our project, that highlight equity challenges teachers faced in the classroom when implementing the CS lessons. The case studies follow the "Teacher Moments" template created by the Teaching Systems Lab in Open Learning at MIT. The case study activity is meant to deepen reflection and discussion on how to create equitable learning opportunities for elementary school students. We present preliminary findings. 

This study examined an urban district’s capacity to diffuse instructional innovations. Social network analysis (SNA) was used to examine the relationship between “informal” teacher support networks and “formal” teacher support networks engineered by administrators through required membership on a team. This study also sought to uncover how school leaders considered study findings in light of their district’s theory of change to improve teacher collaboration. Method: About 1,100 employees responded to a sociometric survey that queried for demographics, team membership, and advice-seeking behavior. SNA methods were used to examine network cohesion (i.e., size, density, isolates, ties) and degree centrality. Statistical analyses (chi-square and multinomial logistic regressions) were performed to examine how team membership were associated with teachers’ advice-seeking behaviors. Visual inspection of sociograms was used to communicate and make meaning of findings with district personnel. Findings: The majority of teachers’ informal instructional support ties were concomitant with shared membership on an administrator created formal team. The majority of teachers who reported that at least one colleague had a strong, positive influence on their practice, also participated in at least one formal team, and believed their team’s collaboration positively affected their instructional practice. Implications: School leaders affect quality of instructional support networks through organizational design. The extent to which teachers are able to access social capital and instructional support is influenced by the choices administrators make about how to structure teacher collaboration.