CS for All 2021 Researcher-Practitioner Partnership Development Workshops

William Marsh Rice University, Houston TX

Investigators

Abstract

There is a broad and sustained effort underway for incorporating computer science and computational thinking into K-12 learning experiences. There are different models for helping teachers, school leaders, and researchers plan and implement innovations for computer science education. Researcher-practitioner partnerships (RPPs) bring teams from schools, districts, and/or state education agencies together with research organizations (e.g., universities or non-profits) to design and investigate teaching and learning. These partnerships are particularly important for creating learning experiences that broaden participation in computer science. The set of workshops in this project support the creation of RPPs for computer science education projects. Teams participate in the workshop and work with a partnership coach to help them with their computer science teaching and learning innovations. The virtual and in-person workshops provide information about how to organize and implement an RPP. The set of workshops focuses on expanding the community of researchers and education leaders who are developing RPPs for computer science education. Two workshops will be held (one virtual, one in-person) to bring together teams. Experts on RPPs serve as partnership coaches to provide tailored support for teams, providing information about how to design resources, collaborate, and conduct research about the changes in computer science teaching and learning that are planned to take place on each project. The workshop also provides information about the CS for All program and guidance about submitting proposals to this program at the National Science Foundation. Finally, the workshop offers evaluation expertise to support teams in crafting ways to collect data during their project to inform project goals. This project is funded through the CS for All: Research and RPPs program. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.