WIPSCE (Workshop in Primary and Secondary Computing Education) is a great conference for those interested in computer science education in school to attend as it combines a really friendly and welcoming international community of researchers with a desire to encourage rigorous theoretical and empirical research in computer science education. The first international WIPSCE conference was… Continue reading Conferences relating to computer science education in school
Author: Sue Sentance
I research computing education in schools, particularly in the UK. My particular interests are programming pedagogy, teacher professional learning in computing, curriculum change, and physical computing. Any views expressed on this site are my own and not endorsed by my employer. I work for the Raspberry Pi Foundation and I'm a Visiting Fellow at King's College London.
My PhD: abstraction in primary Computing
Jane Waite: CAS London Project Manager, based at King's College London, has had a poster accepted at WiPSCE 2016. Jane writes: I recently started a part time PhD in the field of Computer Science and Education at Queen Mary University of London; my supervisors are Paul Cuzon and William Marsh at QMUL and Sue Sentance… Continue reading My PhD: abstraction in primary Computing
A holistic approach to teacher professional development in Computing
Recently (12th July 2016), the new standard for teacher professional development was released by the DfE, in conjunction with the Teacher Professional Development Trust. The standard has five underpinning aims: Professional development should have a focus on improving and evaluating pupil outcomes. Professional development should be underpinned by robust evidence and expertise. Professional development should… Continue reading A holistic approach to teacher professional development in Computing
Computer science education research in schools and pedagogy
There is a growing amount of research in computer science education and also a need to be able to describe the key findings to teachers so that it becomes directly relevant in the classroom. In my recent CAS TV appearance I talk about a range of areas of research and how they may be of… Continue reading Computer science education research in schools and pedagogy
BBC micro:bit – research project
The BBC micro:bit is a pocket-sized codeable computer with motion detection, a built-in compass and Bluetooth technology, and is to be given free to every child in year 7 or equivalent across the UK from March 2016. The first devices were sent to teachers (3 per school) before students in order that teachers could prepare… Continue reading BBC micro:bit – research project
Teacher inquiry in computing education
The CAS Teaching Inquiry in Computing Education (TICE) project is a pilot study investigating how to support teachers in setting up action research projects in Computing. The underlying motivation for this is a belief that teachers can carry out valid investigations in school but need support from academics in the design and analysis of their… Continue reading Teacher inquiry in computing education
Teaching Computing: strategies reported by teachers
As part of the Computing At School (CAS) Survey 2014 we asked all the teacher respondents to tell us what their best strategies were for teaching Computing, including programming, and what the challenges were. Over 300 teachers gave us their comments and the paper reports on the findings. Overall, the nuts and bolts of it… Continue reading Teaching Computing: strategies reported by teachers
Computer Science Education: Theory and Practice
Having just finished teaching this module I am very impressed once again by the enthusiasm and engagement of the teachers and others enrolled for this computer science education course. As well as delving into the literature about various aspects of computer science education research, we also had the opportunity to share ideas and look at… Continue reading Computer Science Education: Theory and Practice
CAS London update
In May 2015 King's College London and Queen Mary University of London were successful in their joint bid to run the Computing At School Regional Centre for London (CAS London) for 2015-2016. For the previous two years, the Department for Education (DfE) had funded CAS to develop the Network of Teaching Excellence in Computer Science;… Continue reading CAS London update
What is computer science education all about?
This blog is about Computer Science Education at King's College London, UK. Computer Science Education is an interdisciplinary field: it is of course about the teaching and learning of computer science but it's also about all the areas that impact on computer science - philosophy, psychology, linguistics, natural sciences, and mathematics - and how they… Continue reading What is computer science education all about?
Sue Sentance 