I am working on the development and continued improvement of my kindergarten through second grade computer science curriculum. Half of the student population are English language learners and average state test scores fall below state averages. Considerations for my environment include constraints around the amount of space and fixed seating in the computer lab. Class periods are sixty minutes, which poses a challenge when trying to hold the attention of lower elementary students. In order to improve the curriculum, I will strive to coordinate age appropriate resources based on ISTE and CSTA standards that include Spanish support.
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I am using Scratch and Google’s CS First curriculum to teach 3rd through 5th grade students fundamental coding concepts in my classroom. The process of signing into two different accounts and navigating to the correct module of CS First was proving too difficult and time consuming for many of my students. I thought at first that this was an issue of typing skills. For example knowing when to use capitals in their passwords. I realized, after working with individual students, that they were struggling with the multi-step process. After struggling with the process for two weeks, I realized that it was an issue of the multi-step process. Instead of including typing lessons into the curriculum, I decided to try redesigning the multi-step process. We’ve had a classroom Google site since the beginning of the year. Students were already familiar with the website structure and navigation. By hyperlinking the correct CS First module page to the classroom website and forgoing the sign in process of CS First, I streamlined the process to take half the time. Some functionality of CS First was lost but the time savings was well worth it. Students even commented on how much easier it was to navigate.
Reframing the problem from typing errors to the multi-step process saved me a significant amount of time and effort. If I had followed through with my original framing of the problem, students would have spent time working on their typing ability. While there is still some value in this skill, it wouldn’t have been addressing the real issue students were facing. By taking the time to reframe the problem, a simple design change allowed students to continue working with the great curriculum of CS First and Scratch. docs.google.com/document/d/16LxRvSCiiNpdA7hEtfCzbFe_pUkq5gSd-Yjv18seZmQ/edit?usp=sharing For my Problem of Practice, I am setting out to design a more inclusive, rigorous computer science/technology curriculum for my kindergarten through second grade students. For this Empathy Report, I chose to create a character profile of my school population. I was looking for some overarching data points that give the greatest insight into my students. The data used in my profile was provided by both Chicago Public Schools and GreatSchools.Org. It is important to note that the data provided is a representation of kindergarten through eighth grade. While the inclusion of grades from third grade through eighth grade are beyond the scope of my design, it does not take away from the insight that it provides. A few key takeaways:
The student population demographic information, 84.7% of students having hispanic heritage, is about what I expected but is still surprising to see in a percentage. The demographic data correlates with 48.2% of students having limited English proficiency. There is one Spanish Bilingual classroom in each grade level, from kindergarten through second grade. Since this data is representative of K-8, there is a larger concentration of limited English speakers in the lower grades. This has posed a significant challenge for me this year. I have found it difficult to communicate. I neither speak Spanish nor have an aid in the classroom that does. Throughout the year, I have relied on the use of Google Translate or having other students help translate. To be completely forthcoming, I have had significant guilt around this issue. This has affected nearly every aspect of my teaching with lower elementary. I catch myself sometimes shying away from trying new things because of this. Another aspect of the student population is that 92.7% are coming from low income households. This provides a new insight into technology access among students. Technology is expensive and having a personal computer is most certainly a luxury item for most. This is a contributing factor to many students, especially younger, coming into the computer lab with little to no exposure to technology outside of school. This significantly impacts the starting point of my curriculum and how I am introducing students to technology. Finally, the last piece of data that is important to recognize is English and Math test scores falling below state averages. Students are struggling, how can I support students and homeroom teachers with the help of technology? Unfortunately, this is what I expected but is not mutually exclusive from the previous data I have talked about.
Rounding out my character profile for students in grades kindergarten through second grade, this is a good start for seeing what my students need most from me to be successful. While nothing that I found in the data of my students was surprising, it was a good way of refocusing my attention and seeing my student’s needs through a different lense. References Chicago Public Schools: Corkery Elementary. (2019, September). Retrieved February 2, 2020, from https://schoolinfo.cps.edu/schoolprofile/schooldetails.aspx?SchoolId=609870 Corkery Elementary. (n.d.). Retrieved February 2, 2020, from https://www.greatschools.org/illinois/chicago/1016-Corkery-Elementary-School/ Link to Google Doc version: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PR3uBvHQppVTMRmxHOxVDWDB8Z8QBy4MOL-St4yDHaY/edit?usp=sharing Perspective 1:
A conversation started with a coworker about bringing a people of color affinity group to the workplace. Cincinnati headquarters having already established a people of color affinity group, I thought it would be beneficial to start one in the Chicago’s satellite office. Wanting to be inclusive and get people excited, I introduced the idea of the group to a white female coworker. She then asked, “Do we even have any people of color in the Chicago office?” I said, “I (as an Asian American) am a person of color.” She says, seeming a bit confused, “But I thought people of color only referred to black people.” “No, all non-white people are considered people of color,” I said. It was at this point that I thought the conversation was going to be over but then she doubled down. “Why do we need a people of color affinity group at work?” she said. Then I said, “Well an affinity group is a safe space to be yourself and talk about ways to be more inclusive.” Seemingly frustrated with the conversation, she then said, “Well I can’t be myself at work.” Attempting to avoid confrontation and feeling like she had missed the whole point of the affinity group. I said, “Wouldn’t it be nice if you could be yourself at work?” Followed by an, “I guess.” ________________________________ Perspective 2: A coworker started talking to me today about a people of color affinity group coming to our Chicago office. I didn’t really know anything about a people of color affinity group, so I was interested in learning more. I asked, “Do we even have any people of color in the Chicago office?” She said, “I (as an Asian American) am a person of color.” I was very surprised by this response because I had always thought that people of color only referred to black people. “But I thought people of color only referred to black people.” “No, all non-white people are considered people of color,” she said. Now finding myself very confused and somewhat embarrassed but curious to find out more. “Why do we need a people of color affinity group at work?” I said. Then she said, “Well, an affinity group is a safe space to be yourself and talk about ways to be more inclusive.” This comment struck me. I responded with, “Well I can’t be myself at work.” Thinking to myself, why is there not an affinity group for me at work? She posed the question of, “Wouldn’t it be nice if you could be yourself at work?” I followed with an, “I guess.” Feeling frustrated and wanting to start my own affinity group so that I can be myself at work. __________________________ Reflection: The exercise of taking a different perspectives of a story was surprisingly difficult. Due to the sensitive and personal nature of the content, I won’t be disclosing their names. When I first heard this story it was shocking. For the person telling the story, it insisted feelings of frustration and confusion. This wasn’t a new person in her life, this was a person she had worked closely with for almost a year. To find that this person had this level of misunderstanding around the topics discussed caused a reassessment of what she thought she knew, not only about this coworker, but about all her coworkers. It provided a significant wake up call around the conversation about diversity and inclusion in her workplace. For me in this experience, it forced me to look more deeply into the thoughts and emotions between two very different people. I am a white cisgender male that grew up in a rural conservative area in Michigan. In my mind, the thoughts and feelings of this coworker, to not understand the meaning of people of color or an affinity group, are misunderstandings I wouldn’t expect to find in downtown Chicago. In fact many of the people from my childhood hold similar ignorant views on the topic. To view this situation through her eyes, I was forced to think of reactions I would expect from some of the people I grew up with. Here is a link to my Google Doc: https://docs.google.com/document/d/11t5bxdDuLDJXtu_wXcBi2tpN6Iqpc2hfRe_bF_PbgbM/edit?usp=sharing |
AuthorMy name is Ryan MacLeod and I live in Seattle, WA. I am currently a K-8 Lab Coordinator. I have a passion for educational technology integration and curriculum design, especially when it comes to the social sciences. Archives
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