Educational reform in the United States is often focused on upgrading school curricula in response to evolution in science, technology, and society. Wyoming is no exception. A 2001 Wyoming Supreme Court decision granted constitutional protection to every K-12 student in the state for a "fair, complete, and equal education, appropriate for the…

Context: Introducing Computer Science (CS) into formal education can be challenging, notably when considering the numerous stakeholders involved which include the students, teachers, schools, and policy makers. We believe these perspectives should be considered conjointly, which is possible within Research Practice Partnerships (RPPs). RPPs look…

Computational thinking (CT) involves breaking a problem into smaller components and solving it using algorithmic thinking and abstraction. CT is no longer exclusively for computer scientists but for everyone. While CT does not necessarily require programming, learning programming to enhance CT skills at a young age can help shape the next…

This study examined student learning outcomes from a middle school computer science (CS) curriculum developed through a researcher and practitioner partnership (RPP) project. The curriculum is based on students creating mobile apps that serve community and social good. We collected two sets of data from 294 students in three urban districts: (1)…

Aim/Purpose: This study reports the outcome of how a first pilot semester introductory programming course was designed to provide tangible evidence in support of the concept of Student Ownership of Learning (SOL) and how the outcomes of this programming course facilitate effective student learning. Background: Many instructors want to create or…

The underrepresentation of certain groups in computing has led to increasing efforts to develop computing curricula that is responsive and relevant to a more diverse group of learners. The current paper used a Quick Scoping Review methodology to identify research that has implemented and evaluated culturally responsive and relevant K-12 computing…

The overall aim of this two-year study is to understand effective practice and lessons learned from approaches to curriculum design and employer engagement by University Technical Colleges (UTCs). Researchers used a case-study methodology supplemented with management information and a survey of UTC students' views. Key findings include: (1)…

The purpose of this study is to investigate and conceptualize the ranks of importance of social cognitive variables on university students' computer programming performances. Spatial ability, working memory, self-efficacy, gender, prior knowledge and the universities students attend were taken as variables to be analyzed. The study has been…

Advances in technology have caused high schools to update their computer science curricula; however there has been little analogous attention to technology-related education in middle schools. With respect to computer-related knowledge and skills, middle school students are at a critical phase in life, exploring individualized education options…

This paper describes the Reinventing Computer Science Curriculum Project at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Motivated by rapid and significant changes in the information technology and computing areas, high diversity in student aptitudes, and high dropout rates, the project designed and implemented an integrated instructional/research…