At King’s College London we are conducting research around making computing education inclusive of all learners. Alex Hadwen-Bennett is currently carrying out research looking into the use of physical programming languages to teach visually impaired children to program. Physical programming languages use physical blocks or pods to represent commands. These blocks or pods can be… Continue reading Identifying Exploratory Procedures of Visually Impaired Learners in Programming
Category: research
A continuum of scaffolding: from copying code to tinkering
Jane Waite, of King's College London & Queen Mary University of London, is researching ways of teaching programming, with the ultimate goal of supporting primary teachers teaching programming. In this post Jane describes a continuum of programming that she uses in training with primary teachers (CAS London run a number of Diving Deep courses in… Continue reading A continuum of scaffolding: from copying code to tinkering
Threshold concepts and non-cognitive dimensions of learning
At King's College London we are involved in research to better understand the teaching and learning of programming in school. In particular, our research project about threshold concepts in programming has entered its second phase and Maria is now looking for students and teachers to take part in the next phase of her research. If… Continue reading Threshold concepts and non-cognitive dimensions of learning
PRIMM: A structured approach to teaching programming
PRIMM is one approach that we hope can help teachers structure lessons in programming. It is based on research into the learning of programming but combines different areas. Our overall interpretation of the research is that teaching programming requires a blended approach using a range of strategies. PRIMM stands for the following: Predict Run Investigate… Continue reading PRIMM: A structured approach to teaching programming
How do you teach with the BBC micro:bit?
At King's College London we are pleased to host a visiting researcher, Filiz Kalelioğlu, from Turkey, who is researching pedagogy and the BBC microbit. Physical computing is fun and engaging, but does it really help students learn, what are the best teaching methods to use with small devices in the classroom, and how can we… Continue reading How do you teach with the BBC micro:bit?
Threshold Concepts in Computer Programming
Phase 1: Threshold Concepts in Functions and Procedural Abstraction The first phase of our research was successfully completed. The purpose of this phase was to explore computing teachers’ perspectives on the Threshold Concept framework and to suggest potential threshold concepts in the area of Functions and, more generally, in Procedural Abstraction. A study was conducted,… Continue reading Threshold Concepts in Computer Programming
Exploring pedagogies for teaching programming in school
Many teachers are able to recognise that students can find programming difficult and can identify the stages that novice school-aged programmers go through (cf Laura Sach's blog article). However it is not as easy to specify a particular teaching strategy that will support learners in gaining confidence and a deep understanding of programming concepts (moving… Continue reading Exploring pedagogies for teaching programming in school
Conferences relating to computer science education in school
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
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
Sue Sentance 