EAGER: Computational Thinking in Action in America's STEM Workplaces

Education Development Center, Waltham MA

Investigators

Abstract

Building on the successes of ATE?s IT Across Careers (ITAC) Project and extensive experience developing national and regional voluntary industry skill standards, EDC and a technical committee of computer scientists and thought leaders in computational thinking (CT) from the University of Washington, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Williams College, Santa Fe Institute, and Raytheon Corporation will develop and validate a common core of CT skill sets used by scientists, technicians/technologists, engineers, and mathematicians in America?s STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) workplaces. The project employs a skill standards development methodology used in European social partnerships to identify a ?learning occupation? and conduct an occupational analysis of that occupation?creating new language and a framework to describe work duties, tasks, skills, knowledge, and attributes of U.S. STEM professional and technical workers empowered with CT. The project will conduct a national online validation of the resulting CT duties, responsibilities, and associated skills, knowledge, and attributes. With expert STEM workers, the project team will develop written and visual examples of how STEM workers use CT skills in routine work to solve problems commonly found in STEM workplaces. Traditional and innovative dissemination strategies will be used to share findings with the national community of CT stakeholders to inform and advance ongoing efforts to define CT, and to integrate CT into K?20 education programs aimed at building the next generation of STEM innovators. Intellectual Merit: The project builds on existing efforts to define CT. It addresses the urgent need to ground the many emerging definitions of Computational Thinking in validated skills, knowledge, and experiences of working scientists, technicians, and technologists who use CT on a daily basis. Engaging expert computational thinkers from laboratories and industry, modifying the DACUM (Developing A CUrriculuM) process to describe CT, and using the ?learning occupation? as a mechanism to surface and promote dialogue across disciplines and work sectors are each radically different from current approaches used by computer scientists to describe and clarify CT. The concept of a learning occupation is a proven way of defining new occupations for emerging industries and occupations that have undergone substantive changes in worker responsibilities. The occupational analysis DACUM methodology has been widely validated and used internationally to identify the skills needed by front-line workers. The proposed activities meet an important need within the CT community and build on prior NSF and National Skill Standards development work. The technical committee connecting the project to national computer science and CT networks are experts who are influential in their fields and highly regarded contributors to evolving definitions of CT. The PI for this project is a seasoned NSF PI who has led NSF projects and a large NSF center successfully serving the needs of NSF projects that develop pathways to STEM careers. Broader Impacts: The occupational analysis methodology provides a new language and structure that can potentially transform dialogue among thought leaders shaping the emerging definitions of computational thinking. The technical committee will ensure that the work finds a prominent place in the national discussion on CT. Demystifying difficult CT concepts will contribute to the public understanding of CT as a foundational skill set for STEM workers and attract new students into STEM. The articulated skill sets and examples will provide learning guideposts for students seeking to become the STEM innovators of the future. Moreover, they will help educators design and develop relevant programs of study, career pathways, and curricula leading students to STEM careers. Examples of CT skills ?in action? in the workplace will be used by counselors and educators to help broaden participation in STEM learning and careers, and lead to the construction of learning experiences that engage underrepresented groups and grow their talent. The processes established within this project will advance understanding of what it takes to articulate new and emerging occupations in STEM and surface important new questions to pursue.