Perla Weaver
Pilot Teacher, Computer Science and Software
Engineering, Project Lead the Way
Wyandotte High School
Kansas City Kansas Public Schools

• Increasing demand from industry
• Decreasing supply of graduates in computing fields
• Computational thinking and skills are not inherently taught in the classroom
– False perception that by teaching math skills and science we are inherently teaching computing skills

• Introduce short activities: One time events e.g. Hour of Code, Coder Dojos, Hackathons
• After school clubs: Teacher-Endorsed,
Student-Driven
• Get your principal and administration on board.
• Aim for curriculum presence.
• Explore partnerships: Code.org

• Project Lead the Way – new Computer Science pathway
• College Board – Computer Science Principles
• CodeHS
• Exploring Computer Science
• The beauty and joy of computing
• Code.org

PLTW – Computer Science and
Software Engineering (CSE)
• Introductory course
• No prior computer science or coding required
• Explores four main areas of computing
– Graphics and Graphical User Interfaces (GUI)
– The Web
– Data discovery and Application Invention
– Predicting, Understanding, and Communicating with Simulation

PLTW- CSE
Code Exploration
• Multiple programming environments: Scratch,
App Inventor, Python, HTML/CSS, and more.
• Computational concepts: binary code, abstraction, variables, data structures
• Problem solving through computing algorithms
• Foster creativity using programming as a tool

PLTW- CSE
More than just Coding
• Impact and presence of computing
• History and Future of Computing
• Social, legal, and ethical issues in computing
• Career Paths in Computing
• Computing and other fields

PLTW-CSE
“First try” Observations
• Curriculum is rigorous and filled with new concepts
– Students struggle and succeed
– Mastery is not the goal
– Goal is understanding through creation, exploration, inquisition.
• Curriculum may be best in a year long setting
– Concepts need time and practice

PLTW-CSE
Observations
• Activities are flexible
– Students can develop various levels of proficiency
• Programming environments and areas of study are varied
– Wide opportunity for personal interests
– Wide array of applications
• Creativity is fun
– Students love to see solutions: games, phone apps, animations, web sites.

PLTW-CSE
Observations
• Similar performance among ethnic groups
• Girls
– Higher engagement in class
– More questions – less afraid to say “I don’t know”
– Higher rate of project completion
– Slightly lower complexity of projects

PLTW-CSE
Professional Development
• PLTW provides PD as part of their standard summer training
• Teachers do not need to be programmers or computer experts
• Many sources of materials, lessons, ideas
• Many sources for self-paced learning