Miranda C. Parker

Replication, Validation, and Use of a Language Independent CS1 Knowledge Assessment

Computing education lags other discipline-based education research in the number and range of validated assessments available to the research community. Validated assessments are important for researchers to reduce experimental error due to flawed assessments and to allow for comparisons between different experiments. Although the need is great, building assessments from scratch is difficult. Once an assessment is built, its important to be able to replicate it, in order to address problems within it, or to extend it. We developed the Second CS1 Assessment (SCS1) as an isomorphic version of a previously validated language-independent assessment for introductory computer science, the FCS1. Replicating the FCS1 is important to enable free use by a broader research community. This paper is documentation of our process for replicating an existing validated assessment and validating the success of our replication. We present initial use of SCS1 by other research groups, to serve as examples of where it might be used in the future. SCS1 is useful for researchers, but care must be taken to avoid undermining the validity argument.

An eBook for teachers learning CS principles

Identifying Teacher Needs Before we got started, we studied how professionals learn in online education and we studied what CS teachers need to learn. We believe that teachers need something different than what most traditional CS classes teach. Teachers are professionals who are particularly time-stressed. In our studies of professionals taking on-line computer science classes [1], we found that the time constraints were what got in the way of success for many students. Most computer science classes follow an apprenticeship model of teaching. The student is expected to view a lecture or read a chapter, then go work for several hours in the programming language to apply what the information from the lecture was about. Adult professionals don’t have the same number of hours for homework that undergraduate students have. As one professional learning CS online told us, a stray comma can cost hours of time. A teacher learning CS just doesn’t have several extra hours to fix syntax errors. There were times that it would take me hours to find one comma out of place, or find that one something that was wrong, so I didn’t mind sticking with it but it just got to the point where I just didn’t get it.

A critical research synthesis of privilege in computing education

Privilege is an unearned, unasked-for advantage gained because of the way society views an aspect of a students identity, such as race, ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic status, and language. Privilege may provide advantages to some students, and under-privileged students may face unfair barriers to success in education. We review and analyze existing research on privilege in STEM and computing with a focus on identifying privilege and inequality and noting and measuring the impact of privilege and underprivilege. There is more literature on privilege in the broader fields of general and STEM education than in computing education, so we use the superset to identify gaps in our understanding of privilege in computing education. We conclude with research questions that emerge from the gaps in the literature.

Concepts and Practices: Designing and Developing A Modern K-12 CS Framework

Computer science is rapidly expanding across the United States, and as schools look for guidance about what constitutes developmentally appropriate topics, state education departments are looking for assistance in the creation of standards. The K--12 Computer Science (CS) Framework was developed to fit these needs. The framework is the first of its kind in the K--12 CS domain, filling a much-needed structural and definitional role in the field. The framework was created as part of a collaboration at multiple levels within the CS community across the United States. Following the footsteps of other disciplines, this framework provides definitions and guidelines on what students should know (concepts) and be able to do (practices) within certain grade bands in todays computing classrooms. This paper details why the framework was developed, how it was designed, and what impacts it could have on the future of K--12 computing education.

Replicating a Validated CS1 Assessment (Abstract Only)

Validated assessments are important for teachers and researchers. A validated assessment is carefully developed to make sure that it is measuring the right things. Computing education needs more and better validated assessments. Validated assessments provide instructors with insight on how their students are doing in their class and provide researchers with insight on whether certain technologies and interventions are successful. Building high-quality, validated assessments is difficult. However, it is possible to replicate an existing validated assessment, and the new assessment can be validated against the original assessment. We need mechanisms to replicate assessments so that we can build more and more varied assessments for different audiences. We developed the Secondary CS1 Assessment (SCS1) as an isomorphic version of a previously validated assessment instrument for introductory computer science. In this poster we provide an overview for the process of replicating an existing valid knowledge assessment and validating the replication. Handouts will be provided with information about how to access and use the SCS1 Assessment.

Socioeconomic Status and Computer Science Achievement: Spatial Ability as a Mediating Variable in a Novel Model of Understanding

Socioeconomic status (SES) has a measurable impact on many educational outcomes and likely also influences computer science (CS) achievement. We present a novel model to account for the observed connections between SES and CS achievement. We examined possible mediating variables between SES and CS achievement, including spatial ability and access to computing. We define access as comprised of measurements of prior learning opportunities for computing, perceptions of computer science, and encouragement to pursue computing. The factors (SES, spatial ability, access to computing, and CS achievement) were measured through surveys completed by 163 students in introductory computing courses at a college level. Through the use of exploratory structural equation modeling, we found that these variables do impact each other, though not as we originally hypothesized. For our sample of students, we found spatial ability was a mediating variable for SES and CS achievement, but access to computing was not. Neither model explained all the variance, and our subject pool of US college students had higher than average SES. Our findings suggest that SES does influence success in computer science, but that relationship may not be due to access to computing education opportunities. Rather, SES might be influencing variables such as spatial ability which in turn influence CS performance.

Students and Teachers Use An Online AP CS Principles EBook Differently: Teacher Behavior Consistent with Expert Learners

Online education is an important tool for supporting the growing number of teachers and students in computer science. We created two eBooks containing interactive content for Advanced Placement Computer Science Principles, one targeted at teachers and one at students. By comparing the eBook usage patterns of these populations, including activity usage counts, transitions between activities, and pathways through the eBook, we develop a characterization of how student use of the eBook differs from teacher use. We offer design recommendations for how eBooks might be developed to target each of our populations. We ground our recommendations in a theory of teachers as expert learners who possess a greater ability to regulate their own learning process.

Privilege and Computer Science Education: How can we level the playing field?

My research investigates the interaction between privilege and computer science education, and asks what more can be done to level the playing field. Privilege is an unearned, unasked-for advantage gained because of the way society views an aspect of a students identity, such as race, ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic status, and language. Privilege may provide advantages to some students, and under-privileged students may face unfair barriers to success in education.