Day 1
01 Opener 02 Break 03 Model Lessons 04 Debug 05 Break 06 Focus on Equity 07 Break 08 Support 09 Lunch 10 Async 11 Planning 12 Barriers 13 Wrap Up

Session 6: Focus on Equity

45 minutes

discussion-based

Purpose

The purpose of this session is to engage participants in identifying how approaches to implementing CS may challenge equity.

Objectives

  • Participants will use a shared definition for access, diversity, inclusion, and equity in the context of CS education.
  • Participants will identify implementation approaches that challenge equity in CS.

Supplies & Prep

Facilitator Supplies:

Teacher Materials:

Agenda

Equity-focused Language and Definitions (7 minutes)

Scenarios (33 minutes)

Next Steps (5 minutes)

Facilitation Guide

Equity-focused Language and Definitions (7 minutes)

Remarks

Code.org’s vision is “Every student in every school has the opportunity to learn computer science as part of their core K-12 education.” We recognize educators play a vital role in supporting equity in CS education . We also recognize that working towards equity in CS is a journey and that everyone is on their own unique path. This session is an opportunity to discuss how we reach that vision.

Bringing CS to all students involves overcoming barriers to implementing CS, as well as implementing CS equitably. The focus of this session is on implementing CS equitably. Later in the workshop, we address barriers to implementing CS. During this session, I will share language and definitions to anchor our discussions around equity. Then, we will use the shared language to discuss how some approaches to implementing CS challenge equity. We will also discuss recommendations that better support implementing CS equitably.

(2 minutes) Introducing Equity in CS

(1 minute) Participants type in the chat the letter(s) of the corresponding statement in as their response to the following prompt.

  • Prompt:
    • When thinking about how to implement CS equitably, which of the following is important?
      • A. Ensuring the right and opportunity for all students to learn and experience computer science.
      • B. Ensuring the students who learn computer science reflect the demographics of the larger school or community population.
      • C. Creating learning environments that are accessible and welcoming of students’ identities, backgrounds, differences and perspectives without barriers or judgement.

(1 minute) Share with participants the frequency of responses shared.

(4 minutes) Equity-focused Language

(2 minutes) Invite participants to silently read the definitions for access, diversity, inclusion, and equity provided in the slide deck.

Discussion Goal

The purpose of the prompt is to capture what participants are thinking about and where they are coming from in terms of equity and CS. The goal is not to answer participants' questions at this time. Rather, participants will be invited to revisit their questions at the end of the workshop.

Example questions to anticipate include:

  • How do we do it? What is the first step?
  • What if my school’s focus is on testing?
  • What is the difference between inclusion and diversity?
  • What if my district’s focus is on core curriculum?

(2 minutes) Participants individually respond to the prompt on the designated slides.

Prompt:

  • What questions do these definitions raise for you?

(1 minute) Making Meaning of Equity in CS

Remarks

This session may raise many questions for us about equity in CS. The intent of the session is to begin to use a shared language and make sense of equity in CS as a community of educators. This session may result in answering some questions, asking more questions, and we may need to acknowledge our norm of “expecting and accepting non-closure” during this session.

Highlight the following about the image below (adapted from the Guide to inclusive computer science education, 2019).

  • Equity in CS includes access, diversity, and inclusion.
  • Equitable participation in computing education happens when there is
    • Access - CS is available to all students
    • Diversity - Students participating in CS reflect the school’s demographics
    • Inclusion - All students are engaged and learning CS

Scenarios (33 minutes)

Remarks

We are going to engage with three scenarios showing different approaches to implementing CS Fundamentals. We will use guiding questions to apply an equity lens to each scenario to help us keep in mind equity as we consider how we will each implement CS Fundamentals in our classrooms and schools. We will also develop recommendations to take back with us that better support equitable implementation.

We will discuss scenario 1 as a whole group, then you will discuss scenarios 2 and 3 in breakout rooms.

The guiding questions we will use with each scenario are:

  • Who has access in the scenario? Who does not?
  • Who benefits from this implementation?
  • What are the impacts of this implementation for those who have access and those who do not?
  • What recommendations for the scenario will better support access, inclusion, or diversity?

(7 minutes) Whole Group: Scenario 1

(1 minute) Invite participants to read Scenario 1.

  • School Context: The school’s demographics include a majority of students who identify as Latinx/Hispanic, followed by students who identify as either White and Native American. The charter school is in an urban community.

  • Teacher A: What I’ve been doing already is letting students who finish their work early get on the computers and go through the CS curriculum on their own.

  • Teacher B: I can have three groups during reading intervention time. Group 1 is made up of students who don’t need interventions and can get on the computers and go through the CS curriculum on their own. Group 2 is made up of students I will work with for interventions. Group 3 is made up of students who need time to get caught up and finish their work on their own.

(6 minutes) Whole Group: Scenario 1 discussion

Share with participants Scenario 1 focuses on access in CS. Lead participants in a whole group discussion to model applying an equity lens to the scenario using the prompts as a guide. This is an opportunity To model using the shared language by adding your own response to the prompts.

Share with participants your experience in implementing CS Fundamentals in a way that better supports access in CS.

Invite participants to use the “chat box,”, in addition to verbally sharing responses. Provide a pause between each prompt to give participants think-time as well as time to type in the “chat box.” Share patterns or trends in the “chat box” after each prompt.

Remind participants to refer to the “Equity-focused Lanugage” slide during the discussions.

  • Prompts:

    • Who has access to CS in Scenario 1? Who does not?

      • Example response: Students with technology at home and who don’t need additional support in reading and math.

    • Who benefits from this implementation?

      • Example response: A teacher may benefit by not teaching CS and having students learn on their own. Students who do not need additional support in reading and math benefit from the opportunity to learn CS.

  • What are the impacts of this implementation for those who have access and those who do not?

    • Example response: An impact may be students who do not have access and are not included may adopt a mindset they should not learn CS nor belong in CS

Facilitator Tip

Examples of recommendations to better support access:

  • More educators sharing the load of teaching a single course. For example, some general education teachers teach the unplugged/ introduction lessons for a concept chunk, while other educators (to include librarians/tech specialists) teach the skill-building lessons for a single grade.
  • Finding ways to make CS part of the core curriculum by using cross-curricular lesson extension activities included in each course.

What recommendations for Scenario 1 will better support access?

  • Example response: Identify how the curriculum and learning platform supports students who struggle in reading and math. For example Code Studio has features that read instructions to students and provides lots of visuals that support learning math.

(8 minutes) Breakout Rooms

Share with participants they will apply an equity lens to Scenario 2 which focuses on inclusion.

  • Participants will:
  • Read Scenario 2.
  • Discuss the same discussion prompts as those for Scenario 1 and type on the designated slides.

Return to the main room for a whole group share out about Scenario 2.

Transition: Remind participants the designated slides include prompts for the breakout room discussion. Encourage each small group to have a notetaker and presenter who will share key takeaways from small group discussions with the whole group.

Producers: Send groups of 3-4 participants to breakout rooms for eight minutes. Then bring participants back to the main room.

Circulate: Circulate the breakout rooms and provide support as needed.

Small Group Discussion: Scenario 2

Participants have eight minutes to read and discuss Scenario 2 which focuses in inclusion.

  • School Context: The school’s demographics include a majority of students who identify as White, followed by students who identify as African American/Black. The school is in a rural community.

  • Teacher A: Many students are struggling with basic skills and don’t have any computers at home. This is going to be difficult for them and I’m not sure many will be able to do it. They need to be working in reading and math, not in computer science.

  • Teacher B: I agree and I think we should offer CS to the kids we know can keep up and use the curriculum and technology with little help.

Participants discuss the prompts in breakout rooms with a small group of 3-4 and type their responses to the prompts on the designated slides.

  • Prompts:

  • Who has access to CS in Scenario 2? Who does not?

    • Example response: Students who complete their work early have access to CS. Students who do not complete their work early do not have access to CS.

  • Who benefits from this implementation?

    • Example response: A teacher may benefit by not teaching CS, and having students learn on their own. Students who do not need additional support in reading benefit from the opportunity to learn CS.

  • What are the impacts of this implementation for those who have access and those who do not?

    • Example response: An impact may be students who are struggling with reading may adopt a mindset they should not learn nor belong in CS. Students engaging with CS may not get the full benefits of the curriculum if they are learning CS on their own.

Facilitator Tip

Examples of recommendations to better support inclusion:

  • CS as part of centers/stations that all students rotate through.
  • A built-in feature translates lessons into multiple languages in the learning platform. This feature is highlighted in the “Resource and Support” session.

What are recommendations for Scenario 2 to better support inclusion?

  • Example response: Try out a lesson! Teach a single lesson with all students to determine how long a lesson really takes and how to adapt it to meet time constrictions.

(5 minutes) Whole Group Share Out

  • Participants return to the main room and a presenter from each group shares key takeaways from the small group discussions about Scenario 2.

  • Share a personal example with participants about your experience with implementing CS Fundamentals in a way that better supports inclusion in CS.

(8 minutes) Breakout Rooms

Participants have eight minutes to read and discuss Scenario 3 which focuses on diversity.

Participants will:

  • Read Scenario 3.
  • Discuss the same discussion prompts as those for Scenario 2 and type on the designated slides.
  • Return to the main room for a whole group share out about Scenario 3.

Transition: Remind participants the designated slides include prompts for the breakout room discussion. Encourage each small group to have a notetaker and presenter who will share key takeaways from small group discussions with the whole group.

Producers: Send groups of 3-4 participants to breakout rooms for eight minutes. Then bring participants back to the main room.

Circulate: Circulate the breakout rooms and provide support as needed.

Participants discuss their responses to the prompts in breakout rooms with a small group of 3-4 and type their responses to the prompts on the designated slides.

Small Group Discussion: Scenario 3

School Context: The school’s demographics include a majority of students who identify as Black/African American, followed by students who identify as White and Latinx/Hispanic. The school is a public school in an urban community.

Teacher A: What if we offered CS to kids who are interested in joining a club? I have a group of boys who talk about gaming all the time and they would definitely join.

Teacher B: I do too! I also have a group of kids that really like math and science and this would be a good opportunity for them too.

Prompts:

  • Who has access to CS in Scenario 3? Who does not?

    • Example response: Students who like gaming, math, and science have access to CS. Students who do not like gaming, math, or science do not have access to CS.

  • Who benefits from this implementation?

    • Example response: A teacher may benefit by not teaching CS and having students learn on their own. Students who like gaming, math, and science benefit from the opportunity to learn CS.

  • What are the impacts of this implementation for those who have access and those who do not?

    • Example response: An impact may be students who do not like gaming, math, or science may adopt a mindset they should not learn nor belong in CS. Students who have access to CS may not get the full benefits of the curriculum if they are learning CS on their own.

Facilitator Tip

Examples of recommendations to better support diversity:

  • The CS Fundamentals curriculum supports students in engaging and learning math and science because it focuses on problem solving, discovery, and inquiry.
  • The CS Fundamentals curriculum supports students creativity with lessons that include art and student choice.

What are recommendations for Scenario 3 to better support diversity?

  • Example response: Consider giving students and parents a presentation showing CS is not just about gaming or liking math and science as a way of introducing and inviting more students to join.

(5 minutes) Whole Group Share Out

  • Participants return to the main room and a presenter from each group shares key takeaways from the small group discussions about Scenario 3.
  • Share a personal example with participants about your experience with implementing CS Fundamentals in a way that better supports diversity in CS.

Next Steps (5 minutes)

Remarks

A first step in implementing CS equitably is recognizing we need access, diversity, and inclusion working together and identifying where gaps are in each. We each have unique situations in our schools when addressing these gaps. Let’s take a moment to write down what we currently can do, given our roles, to take a step closer towards equity in CS. Let’s also revisit questions that came to your mind at the start of the session.

(5 minutes) Individual Reflection

Participants individually reflect on the following prompts (one per slide) and write their responses using “sticky notes” provided on the designated slides.

Prompts:

  • Slide A: What is your role in implementing CS Fundamentals courses with access, diversity, and inclusion in mind?

  • Slide B: How might keeping in mind access, diversity, and inclusion influence your implementation of CS Fundamentals in your classroom?

  • Slide C: What questions about access, inclusion, and diversity were answered or not? What new questions came to your mind?

  • Slide D: What next steps will you commit to in support of equity in CS?