In this study, we investigated a rural school district's endeavor to implement and sustain coding and robotics integration into their elementary school classrooms. Our data sources were teacher and administrator interviews, video recordings of teachers' learning of coding and robotics, and artifacts. The analysis showed that administrators and…

Introduction: This study explored the impact of synchronous professional development regarding Nemeth Code Within Unified English Braille (UEB) Contexts on the knowledge and skills of 17 teachers of students with visual impairments. Methods: Participants attended the professional development sessions in June 2022 and submitted a pretest, posttest,…

The purpose of the current study is to examine the effect of adapting the engineering design process to robotic coding, STEM, and the nature of science applications on teachers' self-efficacy towards engineering education and attitudes towards robotic coding. A weak experimental design with a single-group pre-test and post-test, one of the…

Computer science, cybersecurity education, and microcredentials are becoming more pervasive in all levels of the educational system. The purpose of this study was partnering with precollegiate teachers: (1) to investigate the self-efficacy of 30 precollegiate teacher participants towards computer science before, during, and after three iterations…

The purpose of this research project was to design, deliver, and informally assess the content and methodology of an introductory online course for the educators of Deaf and Hard of Hearing students (N=20) that focused on the block-based coding language, Scratch. Prior work by The Playful Learning Lab examined various STEM resources and their…

The significance of teachers' self-efficacy in coding education within K-12 settings has grown substantially. However, the literature lacks subject-specific measurement tools tailored to assess teachers' self-efficacy in coding instruction. This study adopted a mixed methods approach to develop a reliable and valid instrument for measuring…

While increasing emphasis has been placed on computer science (CS) and computational thinking (CT) little is known about these topics in elementary classrooms. Significant equity gaps exist within CS/CT at the elementary level, with a major contributor being the lack of highly qualified CS/CT elementary teachers. Professional development (PD) for…

Background and context: Transfer is a process where students apply their learning to different contexts. This process includes using their knowledge to solve problems with similar complexity, and in new contexts. In the context of programming, transfer also includes being able to understand and use different programming languages. Objective: This…

Tasks for teaching predictive modelling and APIs often require learners to use code-driven tools. Minimal research, however, exists about the design of tasks that support the introduction of high school students and teachers to these new statistical and computational methods. Using a design-based research approach, a web-based task was developed.…

Prior work has shown a lack of quality professional development (PD) programs specifically targeted for early elementary teachers to improve their knowledge and self-efficacy around teaching coding in their classrooms. Whereas traditional PD programs in this area have relied upon in-person workshops, the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated the need to…

Developing computational thinking (CT) skills at an early age can help develop literacy, science, and mathematics skills; however, CT instruction in grades K-2 remains limited. This study examined the perceptions of 45 K-2 teachers from 30 school districts before and after a CT professional development (PD) experience. The PD included two online…

How can we engage new engineering and computer science graduate students in meaningful conversations about research and publication ethics without establishing a common understanding of the issues and expectations? Most universities offer extensive responsible conduct of research (RCR) training programs, which are usually a semester-long. Absent a…

Despite the benefits of teaching computational thinking (CT) and applying coding tools in schools, many teachers feel unprepared to use these technologies. Hence, we introduced CT concepts and coding tools to pre-service teachers (n=36; 17 in online class and 19 in in-person class), equipping them with digital competencies through activities with…

This study employs a potential outcomes modeling approach to estimate the effect of Code.org's Professional Learning Program on Advanced Placement (AP) Computer Science Principles test taking and qualifying score earned for a recent cohort of 167 schools compared to a matched group of comparison schools. Results indicate substantial and…

The aim of this study was to explore how the Coding as Another Language using ScratchJr (CAL-ScratchJr) curriculum, developed by Boston College's DevTech Research Group utilizing the ScratchJr app, impacted second grade students' computational thinking, coding skills, and reading comprehension. To accomplish this, the research team randomly…