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I studied to become a computer science teacher. I have not finished my certification for various reasons but I have some limited field work under my belt along

by gatlin 15y ago

I studied to become a computer science teacher. I have not finished my certification for various reasons but I have some limited field work under my belt along with numerous discussions and readings. And, of course, my anecdotal but legitimate experience in public schooling. Let's get one thing straight: the problem is bad teachers. My mentor once said it kind of sucks that UTeach was only available to UT students and by extension those who statistically succeeded in traditional schooling because they are usually the least acquainted with the system's failures. That "test" they show inside is bullshit, first of all. If they showed that to me as a completely green 11 year old without explaining the syntax or semantics of what was going on, I'd probably have to ask some clarifying questions. And, I think it goes without saying, if the professor is the type of teacher to go into a class with the expectation that half the class will fail, I'd probably have shaky confidence and would hesitate to ask questions since everyone is quickly cast into a mold of either "have" or "have not." I've taken math courses before by these people. Many so-called "gifted" math students (and we're all students) are great with applied math but are just as stumped by theory as everyone else (anecdotal). Testosterone and typical youthful arrogance turns classrooms into settings hostile to people aren't extremely competitive and who are somewhat unsure of themselves. Combine this with a teacher who was once one of the cocky ones and a few snide remarks about how some students "just don't get it" and what you have is a self-fulfilling prophecy. If your students fail to learn, it means you did not teach them adequately. Learning is the product of the work of learners: you have to give them the proper resources to work with. Humans are exceptionally capable. Children are extremely inquisitive and interested in so many mundane things; they can be taught math. This is beaten out of them as they get older and they're told there is a cap to what they can accomplish. Bah. Humbug. A good set of resources for anyone looking to teach programming and/or computer science is CS Unplugged (http://csunplugged.org/ http://csunplugged.org/). No computers. Much of it relies on human interaction. It's fun, it's versatile, and most importantly it distills the important parts of computer science while shedding the stuff that gets in the way: confusing, advanced user interfaces; arcane terminology and confusing history; and the stigma that a computer brings to those who've never worked with them before.

deleted 15y ago
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gatlin 15y ago
As a followup tangent, I would say that the strength of a teacher can be measured by how attentive they are to the work their students are doing. For example: a student might come up with a hideously convoluted but verifiably correct algorithm to perform multiplication. An arrogant teacher expecting the normal answers might throw it out. A patient and attentive one might very well try out the algorithm and see if it's actually kind of close. The test they mention only detects one kind of mental model for programming. What if some kid is unsure about the side-effects of `=`? Do we fail that kid for having an intuitive understanding of something most of us are introduced to as undergrads?
malingo 15y ago
I think the CS Unplugged approach has a tremendous amount of potential, particularly with its intended audience (primary school). In my 3rd grade class in 1986, one day the teacher told us that she had a loaf of sliced bread in a bag, a jar of peanut butter, a jar of jam, and a knife. She asked each student to write, on a sheet of paper, instructions for making a PBJ sandwich. When all the students had finished, the teacher followed each set of instructions exactly as written. It was amazing and hilarious to see the literal interpretations. I remember it very clearly because I was one of the students who gave incomplete instructions, and it was a minor blow to my ego because I was one of the smart kids. It was also my first programming lesson. For young students, simple activities like these (and other communication / language exercises like sentence diagramming) can have significant benefits later in their education. I don't think introductory CS education should be completely replaced by non-computer exercises, but it's no surprise that many HS students and college freshmen don't "get it" when the first thing they're exposed to is a pile of code.
- neilparikh 15y ago
  About the PBJ exercise, last semester (I'm in grade 10 right now), we had to do the same thing in Chemistry, except for a lab. It was teach us to provide detailed instructions in the lab write-ups. Almost no one in the class had detailed enough instructions. It worked like a charm. After that, on the rest of my labs, I went in a lot of detail in the instructions. I have to agree that it is a great way of teaching, and it would be amazing if every student encountered it at least once in their schooling. Especially at a younger age, it would instill an attention to detail in the student, which would serve him well for the rest of his life.

by gatlin 15y ago

deleted 15y ago

[deleted]

gatlin 15y ago

As a followup tangent, I would say that the strength of a teacher can be measured by how attentive they are to the work their students are doing. For example: a student might come up with a hideously convoluted but verifiably correct algorithm to perform multiplication. An arrogant teacher expecting the normal answers might throw it out. A patient and attentive one might very well try out the algorithm and see if it's actually kind of close. The test they mention only detects one kind of mental model for programming. What if some kid is unsure about the side-effects of `=`? Do we fail that kid for having an intuitive understanding of something most of us are introduced to as undergrads?

malingo 15y ago

I think the CS Unplugged approach has a tremendous amount of potential, particularly with its intended audience (primary school). In my 3rd grade class in 1986, one day the teacher told us that she had a loaf of sliced bread in a bag, a jar of peanut butter, a jar of jam, and a knife. She asked each student to write, on a sheet of paper, instructions for making a PBJ sandwich. When all the students had finished, the teacher followed each set of instructions exactly as written. It was amazing and hilarious to see the literal interpretations. I remember it very clearly because I was one of the students who gave incomplete instructions, and it was a minor blow to my ego because I was one of the smart kids. It was also my first programming lesson. For young students, simple activities like these (and other communication / language exercises like sentence diagramming) can have significant benefits later in their education. I don't think introductory CS education should be completely replaced by non-computer exercises, but it's no surprise that many HS students and college freshmen don't "get it" when the first thing they're exposed to is a pile of code.

neilparikh 15y ago
About the PBJ exercise, last semester (I'm in grade 10 right now), we had to do the same thing in Chemistry, except for a lab. It was teach us to provide detailed instructions in the lab write-ups. Almost no one in the class had detailed enough instructions. It worked like a charm. After that, on the rest of my labs, I went in a lot of detail in the instructions. I have to agree that it is a great way of teaching, and it would be amazing if every student encountered it at least once in their schooling. Especially at a younger age, it would instill an attention to detail in the student, which would serve him well for the rest of his life.