Project 1
NSF Award #1837380
Preparing K-5 Teachers to Integrate the Computer Science Standards of Learning in Inclusive Classrooms to Support Students with High Incidence Disabilities
Objective:
Researchers will generate and implement a usable, comprehensive model of professional development to support K-5 computer science integration in elementary instruction for all learners, with an emphasis on supporting students with high-incidence disabilities (i.e., learning disabilities, emotional or behavioral disorders, mild intellectual disability, high-functioning autism and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder).
Model:
To create this model, researchers will work in partnership with a large public school district in Virginia. School personnel will use a Design-Based Implementation Research (DBIR) process to refine an effective professional development model to support elementary teachers in inclusive classrooms in integrating recently mandated computer science standards into math, science, and literacy instruction in ways accessible to students with high-incidence disabilities.
Overarching Question:
How do multiple stakeholders collaboratively refine and develop effective and sustainable professional development related to the integration of computer science in K-5 inclusive classrooms to support students with high incidence disabilities?
Project 2
NSF Award #2122807
A Partnership to Implement the Inclusive Computer Science Model of Professional Development and a Digital Platform for PK-6 Computer Science teaching for Students with Disabilities
Objective:
Researchers will implement the Inclusive Computer Science (ICS) model of professional development (PD) and DEPICT-CS (a UDL-based digital learning platform) to provide PK-6 computer science instruction for students with and without high-incidence disabilities.
Model:
The project will use the NSF-funded Inclusive Computer Science (ICS) model of professional development (PD), alongside the partnering school division’s current approaches to curriculum development, to reform and scale how they prepare teachers to develop and implement computer science curricula, particularly for students with high-incidence disabilities. As part of the Inclusive Computer Science (ICS) model of professional development (PD), teachers will be introduced to new approaches for supporting students with disabilities in learning computer science, including the researchers’ newly developed, universally-designed tool called the Digital Effective Platform for Inclusive Computational Thinking and Computer Science (DEPICT-CS).
Overarching Question:
What conditions are necessary for the Inclusive Computer Science (ICS) model of professional development (PD) to be effectively implemented on a district-wide scale to increase and sustain computer science instruction and interest for all students, particularly those with high-incidence disabilities in PK-6 inclusive classrooms?
