Schlagwort: education

  • Imagining students’ progression in the era of generative AI

    Imagining students’ progression in the era of generative AI

    Reading Time: 6 minutes

    Generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools are becoming more easily accessible to learners and educators, and increasingly better at generating code solutions to programming tasks, code explanations, computing lesson plans, and other learning resources. This raises many questions for educators in terms of what and how we teach students about computing and AI, and AI’s impact on assessment, plagiarism, and learning objectives.

    Brett Becker.

    We were honoured to have Professor Brett Becker (University College Dublin) join us as part of our ‘Teaching programming (with or without AI)’ seminar series. He is uniquely placed to comment on teaching computing using AI tools, having been involved in many initiatives relevant to computing education at different levels, in Ireland and beyond.

    In a computing classroom, two girls concentrate on their programming task.

    Brett’s talk focused on what educators and education systems need to do to prepare all students — not just those studying Computing — so that they are equipped with sufficient knowledge about AI to make their way from primary school to secondary and beyond, whether it be university, technical qualifications, or work.

    How do AI tools currently perform?

    Brett began his talk by illustrating the increase in performance of large language models (LLMs) in solving first-year undergraduate programming exercises: he compared the findings from two recent studies he was involved in as part of an ITiCSE Working Group. In the first study — from 2021 — the results generated by GPT-3 were similar to those of students in the top quartile. By the second study in 2023, GPT-4’s performance matched that of a top student (Figure 1).

    A graph comparing exam scores.

    Figure 1: Student scores on Exam 1 and Exam 2, represented by circles. GPT-3’s 2021 score is represented by the blue ‘x’, and GPT-4’s 2023 score on the same questions is represented by the red ‘x’.

    Brett also explained that the study found some models were capable of solving current undergraduate programming assessments almost error-free, and could solve the Irish Leaving Certificate and UK A level Computer Science exams.

    What are challenges and opportunities for education?

    This level of performance raises many questions for computing educators about what is taught and how to assess students’ learning. To address this, Brett referred to his 2023 paper, which included findings from a literature review and a survey on students’ and instructors’ attitudes towards using LLMs in computing education. This analysis has helped him identify several opportunities as well as the ethical challenges education systems face regarding generative AI. 

    The opportunities include: 

    • The generation of unique content, lesson plans, programming tasks, or feedback to help educators with workload and productivity
    • More accessible content and tools generated by AI apps to make Computing more broadly accessible to more students
    • More engaging and meaningful student learning experiences, including using generative AI to enable creativity and using conversational agents to augment students’ learning
    • The impact on assessment practices, both in terms of automating the marking of current assessments as well as reconsidering what is assessed and how

    Some of the challenges include:

    • The lack of reliability and accuracy of outputs from generative AI tools
    • The need to educate everyone about AI to create a baseline level of understanding
    • The legal and ethical implications of using AI in computing education and beyond
    • How to deal with questionable or even intentionally harmful uses of AI and mitigating the consequences of such uses

    Programming as a basic skill for all subjects

    Next, Brett talked about concrete actions that he thinks we need to take in response to these opportunities and challenges. 

    He emphasised our responsibility to keep students safe. One way to do this is to empower all students with a baseline level of knowledge about AI, at an age-appropriate level, to enable them to keep themselves safe. 

    Secondary school age learners in a computing classroom.

    He also discussed the increased relevance of programming to all subjects, not only Computing, in a similar way to how reading and mathematics transcend the boundaries of their subjects, and the need he sees to adapt subjects and curricula to that effect. 

    As an example of how rapidly curricula may need to change with increasing AI use by students, Brett looked at the Irish Computer science specification for “senior cycle” (final two years of second-level, ages 16–18). This curriculum was developed in 2018 and remains a strong computing curriculum in Brett’s opinion. However, he pointed out that it only contains a single learning outcome on AI. 

    To help educators bridge this gap, in the book Brett wrote alongside Keith Quille to accompany the curriculum, they included two chapters dedicated to AI, machine learning, and ethics and computing. Brett believes these types of additional resources may be instrumental for teaching and learning about AI as resources are more adaptable and easier to update than curricula. 

    Generative AI in computing education

    Taking the opportunity to use generative AI to reimagine new types of programming problems, Brett and colleagues have developed Promptly, a tool that allows students to practise prompting AI code generators. This tool provides a combined approach to learning about generative AI while learning programming with an AI tool. 

    Promptly is intended to help students learn how to write effective prompts. It encourages students to specify and decompose the programming problem they want to solve, read the code generated, compare it with test cases to discern why it is failing (if it is), and then update their prompt accordingly (Figure 2). 

    An example of the Promptly interface.

    Figure 2: Example of a student’s use of Promptly.

    Early undergraduate student feedback points to Promptly being a useful way to teach programming concepts and encourage metacognitive programming skills. The tool is further described in a paper, and whilst the initial evaluation was aimed at undergraduate students, Brett positioned it as a secondary school–level tool as well. 

    Brett hopes that by using generative AI tools like this, it will be possible to better equip a larger and more diverse pool of students to engage with computing.

    Re-examining the concept of programming

    Brett concluded his seminar by broadening the relevance of programming to all learners, while challenging us to expand our perspectives of what programming is. If we define programming as a way of prompting a machine to get an output, LLMs allow all of us to do so without the need for learning the syntax of traditional programming languages. Taking that view, Brett left us with a question to consider: “How do we prepare for this from an educational perspective?”

    You can watch Brett’s presentation here:

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0BZq8uRutQ?feature=oembed&w=500&h=281]

    Join our next seminar

    The focus of our ongoing seminar series is on teaching programming with or without AI. 

    For our next seminar on Tuesday 11 June at 17:00 to 18:30 GMT, we’re joined by Veronica Cucuiat (Raspberry Pi Foundation), who will talk about whether LLMs could be employed to help understand programming error messages, which can present a significant obstacle to anyone new to coding, especially young people.  

    To take part in the seminar, click the button below to sign up, and we will send you information about how to join. We hope to see you there.

    The schedule of our upcoming seminars is online. You can catch up on past seminars on our blog and on the previous seminars and recordings page.

    Website: LINK

  • 5 ways to use Arduino with kids

    5 ways to use Arduino with kids

    Reading Time: 5 minutes

    One of the great things about making is that it really is for everyone — every budget, every skill level, and every age group.

    Children are one of the groups that can benefit the most from Arduino. Getting exposed to making and home automation from an early age can be enormously beneficial for kids and their families, and can spark a lifelong love for technology.

    In this article, we’ll look at why Arduino is so great for kids, and some of the ways parents, older relatives, and teachers can use Arduino’s products to entertain, educate, and inspire young learners.

    Why is Arduino so great for kids?

    • It teaches valuable STEM skills: STEM has always been a lucrative field, and as we enter an increasingly tech-driven world this trend looks likely to continue. Arduino projects can help kids gain hands-on experience and build a solid foundation of STEM skills from an early age.
    • It can begin a lifelong love for engineering. Making projects from a young age can be the start of a wonderful journey, giving kids a passion that can follow them through life and lead to many great experiences.
    • It’s a community: The Arduino community extends across the entire world, with regular meetups and events where like-minded makers can get together. For kids, this can be a great way to make friends and be part of a wider group.
    • It helps build wider skills: On top of pure STEM, using Arduino can also help kids grow in other areas, by encouraging skills like problem-solving and teamwork.
    • It’s fun: What more needs to be said? Tinkering with Arduino projects is a ton of fun, and that’s a huge benefit in itself.

    5 ways to use Arduino with kids

    Now let’s take a look at some specific ways we can use Arduino with young learners, illustrated with a few real-life examples of projects.

    1. Learn through projects

    Arduino can be the perfect gateway into making and engineering as hobbies, by giving kids accessible and fun projects to learn fundamental skills and gain practical experience.

    Take a look at this project, for example — which teaches kids the fundamentals of AI and machine learning via a fun game. Since these skills are exploding in importance, getting a solid headstart here is a valuable opportunity.

    2. Projects for groups

    One of the best things about Arduino for kids is the teamwork aspect, and the ability to work together toward a shared goal. This not only brings a new dimension of fun to the activity but also helps foster social skills and make friends.

    Take a look at this automated gardening project from EDUcentrum. In this tutorial, kids build a smart watering system for a connected plant, which they will then monitor over time. Then, they’ll discuss the project with their peers and do a presentation.

    3. Projects for kids with kids with autism

    STEM really should be accessible to everyone, and in fact, children with autism can benefit enormously from Arduino projects.

    Arduino For Autism is a group dedicated to helping mentor kids with autism, showing them how to work with microcontrollers. It’s designed to give kids with autism an introduction to the world of making and STEM in general, helping lay the foundations for skills like coding, engineering, and game development.

    Arduino can also be a useful tool for parents of children with autism. Phillip Mallon is a great example — on his website he shares the projects he’s built to help his son Jason, who has severe autism. Examples include a simpler timer for time management and an easy-to-use MP3 player.

    4. Projects to help parents

    Parenting is a tough task, but Arduino can help in this area, too.

    For example, check out this baby formula tracker. The monitor is designed to help randallph and his wife keep track of their daughter’s feeding times and make sure she is eating the right amounts at the right intervals.

    5. Learning mixed with fun

    Learning doesn’t have to be a chore — and there’s no better proof of that than this project, a device that launches NERF darts to show how angles affect the trajectory of ballistics.

    It was built by Arduino user buildfams and won Arduino Project of the Month in March 2023. Buildfams and his son worked together to build the project — a valuable learning experience in itself — and ended up with a fun gadget and a great way to learn key physics concepts.

    Tools and products

    On top of project ideas, Arduino also has several tools and products specifically designed to help beginners and kids make a start with their own projects. Let’s take a closer look.

    Get started with making

    If you or your kids are brand new to making, Arduino’s Student Kit is made for you. It’s built to help learners get started with making projects, covering basic skills like coding and building electronic circuits. It’s made for complete beginners — making it perfect for kids — and includes 11 activities designed to guide the learner through key concepts and important skills.

    Learn key scientific skills

    If learning basic scientific skills and concepts is your goal, look no further than the Science Kit R3 by Arduino. Designed to teach key scientific skills, bringing abstract theories to life through practical, interactive projects.

    Learn the basics of STEM

    Arduino’s Starter Kit is the perfect introduction to STEM and can be used at home or in the classroom. The kit teaches fundamental skills like coding and electronics through engaging, fun projects. It covers a ton of important basic concepts, from sensors and actuators to digital logic, while also encouraging learners to think critically and work together to solve problems.

    Alvik

    Arduino enthusiasts have yet another product to play with! Alvik is designed for students and teachers to explore the world of robotics, introducing this fascinating field to young learners with a unique approach. Why not grab yours today?!

    Learn more about Arduino and how you can use it with young learners (and older ones too!).

    The post 5 ways to use Arduino with kids appeared first on Arduino Blog.

    Website: LINK

  • Introducing classroom management to the Code Editor

    Introducing classroom management to the Code Editor

    Reading Time: 4 minutes

    I’m excited to announce that we’re developing a new set of Code Editor features to help school teachers run text-based coding lessons with their students.

    Secondary school age learners in a computing classroom.

    New Code Editor features for teaching

    Last year we released our free Code Editor and made it available as an open source project. Right now we’re developing a new set of features to help schools use the Editor to run text-based coding lessons online and in-person.

    The new features will enable educators to create coding activities in the Code Editor, share them with their students, and leave feedback directly on each student’s work. In a simple and easy-to-use interface, educators will be able to give students access, group them into classes within a school account, and quickly help with resetting forgotten passwords.

    Example Code Editor feedback screen from an early prototype

    We’re adding these teaching features to the Code Editor because one of the key problems we’ve seen educators face over the last few months has been the lack of an ideal tool to teach text-based coding in the classroom. There are some options available, but they can be cost-prohibitive for schools and educators. Our mission is to support young people to realise their full potential through the power of computing, and we believe that to tackle educational disadvantage, we need to offer high-quality tools and make them as accessible as possible. This is why we’ll offer the Code Editor and all its features to educators and students for free, forever.

    A learner and educator at a laptop.

    Alongside the new classroom management features, we’re also working on improved Python library support for the Code Editor, so that you and your students can get more creative and use the Editor for more advanced topics. We continue to support HTML, CSS, and JavaScript in the Editor too, so you can set website development tasks in the classroom.

    Two learners at a laptop in a computing classroom.

    Educators have already been incredibly generous in their time and feedback to help us design these new Code Editor features, and they’ve told us they’re excited to see the upcoming developments. Pete Dring, Head of Computing at Fulford School, participated in our user research and said on LinkedIn: “The class management and feedback features they’re working on at the moment look really promising.” Lee Willis, Head of ICT and Computing at Newcastle High School for Girls, also commented on the Code Editor: “We have used it and love it, the fact that it is both for HTML/CSS and then Python is great as the students have a one-stop shop for IDEs.”

    Our commitment to you

    • Free forever: We will always provide the Code Editor and all of its features to educators and students for free.
    • A safe environment: Accounts for education are designed to be safe for students aged 9 and up, with safeguarding front and centre.
    • Privacy first: Student data collection is minimised and all collected data is handled with the utmost care, in compliance with GDPR and the ICO Children’s Code.
    • Best-practice pedagogy: We’ll always build with education and learning in mind, backed by our leading computing education research.
    • Community-led: We value and seek out feedback from the computing education community so that we can continue working to make the Code Editor even better for teachers and students.

    Get started

    We’re working to have the Code Editor’s new teaching features ready later this year. We’ll launch the setup journey sooner, so that you can pre-register for your school account as we continue to work on these features.

    Before then, you can complete this short form to keep up to date with progress on these new features or to get involved in user testing.

    A female computing educator with three female students at laptops in a classroom.

    The Code Editor is already being used by thousands of people each month. If you’d like to try it, you can get started writing code right in your browser today, with zero setup.

    Website: LINK

  • Supporting Computing in England through our renewed partnership with Oak National Academy

    Supporting Computing in England through our renewed partnership with Oak National Academy

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    We are pleased to announce that we are renewing our partnership with Oak National Academy in England to provide an updated high-quality Computing curriculum and lesson materials for Key Stages 1 to 4.

    In a computing classroom, a girl looks at a computer screen.

    New curriculum and materials for the classroom

    In 2021 we partnered with Oak National Academy to offer content for schools in England that supported young people to learn Computing at home while schools were closed as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

    A teacher and learner at a laptop doing coding.

    In our renewed partnership, we will create new and updated materials for primary and secondary teachers to use in the classroom. These classroom units will be available for free on the Oak platform and will include everything a teacher needs to deliver engaging lessons, including slide decks, worksheets, quizzes, and accompanying videos for over 550 lessons. The units will cover both the general national Computing curriculum and the Computer Science GCSE, supporting teachers to provide a high-quality Computing offering to all students aged 5 to 16.

    Secondary school age learners in a computing classroom.

    These new resources will update the very successful Computing Curriculum and will be rigorously tested by a Computing subject expert group.

    “I am delighted that we are continuing our partnership with Oak National Academy to support all teachers in England with world-leading resources for teaching Computing and Computer Science. This means that all teachers in England will have access to free, rigorous and tested classroom resources that they can adapt to suit their context and students.” – Philip Colligan, CEO

    All our materials on the Oak platform will be free and openly available, and can be accessed by educators worldwide.

    Research-informed, time-saving, and adaptable resources

    As we did with The Computing Curriculum, we’ll design these teaching resources to model best practice, and they will be informed by leading research into pedagogy and computing education, as well as by user testing and feedback. 

    Young learners at computers in a classroom.

    The materials will bring teachers the added benefit of saving valuable time, and schools can choose to adapt and use the resources in the way that works best for their students

    Supporting schools in England and worldwide

    We have already started work and will begin releasing units of lessons in autumn 2024. All units across Key Stages 1 to 4 will be available by autumn 2025.

    A teenager learning computer science.

    We’re excited to continue our partnership with Oak National Academy to provide support to teachers and students in England. 

    And as always, our comprehensive classroom resources can be downloaded for free, by anyone in the world, from our website.

    Website: LINK

  • Season 6 of the Hello World podcast is here

    Season 6 of the Hello World podcast is here

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    Through the Hello World podcast, we help to connect computing educators around the world and share their experiences. In each episode, we expand on a topic from a recent Hello World magazine issue. After 5 seasons, and a break last year, we are back with season 6 today.

    Hello World logo.

    Episode 1: Do kids still need to learn how to code?

    In the recent ‘Teaching & AI’ issue of Hello World, our CEO Philip Colligan discussed what AI means for computing education, including for learning to program. And our first new podcast episode is all about this question, which every computing educator has probably thought about at least once in recent months: Do kids still need to learn how to code?

    Joining my co-host Veronica and me are two computing educators: Pete Dring, Head of Computing at Fulford School in York, and Chris Coetzee, a computer science teacher for 24 years and currently a PhD student in Computer Science Education at Abertay Dundee. Given the recent developments in AI-based code generators, we talk about whether such tools will remove our learners’ need to learn to code or simply change what coding, and learning to code, looks like*.

    What’s coming up in future episodes?

    New episode of season 6 will come out every 2 weeks. In each episode we explore computing, coding, and digital making education by delving into an exciting topic together with our guests: experts, practitioners, and other members of the Hello World community.

    Also in season 6, we’ll explore:

    The role of computing communities

    We discuss the value and importance of being connected to other computing educators through the many different teaching communities that exist around the world. What makes effective communities, and how do we build and sustain them?

    A group of students and a teacher at the Coding Academy in Telangana.

    Why is understanding cybersecurity so important?

    From classroom lessons to challenges and competitions, there are lots of opportunities for learners to discover cybersecurity. There are also many pitfalls where learners’ online activities put them at risk of breaking the law. We discuss some of these pitfalls along with the many career opportunities in cybersecurity.

    How to develop as a computing educator?

    What is involved in becoming an effective computing educator? What knowledge, skills, and behaviours are needed, and how do we go about developing them? We sit down with teacher trainers and trainees to explore this topic.

    Two learners and a teacher in a physical computing lesson.

    What is the state of computing education and where is it heading?

    Computing education has come a long way in the last decade in terms of practice and policy, as well as research. Together with our guests we discuss where computing education is today around the world, and we consider the lessons we can learn and the challenges ahead

    What is the role of AI in your classroom?

    AI continues to be a disruptive technology in many spaces, and the classroom is no exception. We hear examples of practices and approaches being explored by teachers in the classroom.

    If you’ve not listened to the Hello World podcast yet, there are 5 whole seasons for you to discover. We talk about everything from ecology and quantum computing to philosophy, ethics, and inclusion, and our conversations always focus on the practicalities of teaching in the classroom.

    Many of our podcast guests are Hello World authors, so if you’re an educator who wants to share your insights into how to teach young people about digital technology, please let us know. Your words could end up in the pages as well as on the airwaves of Hello World.

    You’ll find the upcoming Hello World season and past episodes on your favourite podcast platform, including YouTube now, where you can also subscribe to never miss an episode. Alternatively, you can listen here via your browser.

    * If you want to dive into the newest research on programming education with and without AI, check out our current seminar series.

    Website: LINK

  • Our T Level resources to support vocational education in England

    Our T Level resources to support vocational education in England

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    You can now access classroom resources created by us for the T Level in Digital Production, Design and Development. T Levels are a type of vocational qualification young people in England can gain after leaving school, and we are pleased to be able to support T Level teachers and students.

    A teenager learning computer science.

    With our new resources, we aim to empower more young people to develop their digital skills and confidence while studying, meaning they can access more jobs and opportunities for further study once they finish their T Levels.

    We worked collaboratively with the Gatsby Charitable Foundation on this pilot project as part of their Technical Education Networks Programme, the first time that we have created classroom resources for post-16 vocational education.

    Post-16 vocational training and T Levels

    T Levels are Technical Levels, 2-year courses for 16- to 18-year-old school leavers. Launched in England in September 2020, T Levels cover a range of subjects and have been developed in collaboration with employers, education providers, and other organisations. The aim is for T Levels to specifically prepare young people for entry into skilled employment, an apprenticeship, or related technical study in further or higher education.

    A group of young people in a lecture hall.

    For us, this T Level pilot project follows on from work we did in 2022 to learn more about post-16 vocational training and identify gaps where we could make a difference. 

    Something interesting we found was the relatively low number of school-age young people who started apprenticeships in the UK in 2019/20. For example, a 2021 Worldskills UK report stated that only 18% of apprentices were young people aged 19 and under. 39% were aged 19-24, and the remaining 43% were people aged 25 and over.

    To hear from young people about their thoughts directly, we spoke to a group of year 10 students (ages 14 to 15) at Gladesmore School in Tottenham. Two thirds of these students said that digital skills were ‘very important’ to them, and that they would consider applying for a digital apprenticeship or T Level. When we asked them why, one of the key reasons they gave was the opportunity to work and earn money, rather than moving into further study in higher education and paying tuition fees. One student’s answer was for example, “It’s a good way to learn new skills while getting paid, and also gives effective work experience.”

    T Level curriculum materials and project brief

    To support teachers in delivering the Digital Production, Design and Development T Level qualification, we created a new set of resources: curriculum materials as well a project brief with examples to support the Occupational Specialism component of the qualification. 

    A girl in a university computing classroom.

    The curriculum materials on the topic ‘Digital environments’ cover content related to computer systems including hardware, software, networks, and cloud environments. They are designed for teachers to use in the classroom and consist of a complete unit of work: lesson plans, slide decks, activities, a progression chart, and assessment materials. The materials are designed in line with our computing content framework and pedagogy principles, on which the whole of our Computing Curriculum is based.

    The project brief is a real-world scenario related to our work and gives students the opportunity to problem-solve as though they are working in an industry job.

    Access the T Level resources

    The T Level project brief materials are available for download now, with the T Level classroom materials coming in the next few weeks.

    We hope T Level teachers and students find the resources useful and interesting — if you’re using them, please let us know your thoughts and feedback.

    Our thanks to the Gatsby Foundation for collaborating with us on this work to empower more young people to fulfil their potential through the power of computing and digital technologies.

    Website: LINK

  • Grounded cognition: physical activities and learning computing

    Grounded cognition: physical activities and learning computing

    Reading Time: 4 minutes

    Everyone who has taught children before will know the excited gleam in their eyes when the lessons include something to interact with physically. Whether it’s printed and painstakingly laminated flashcards, laser-cut models, or robots, learners’ motivation to engage with the topic will increase along with the noise levels in the classroom.

    Two learners do physical computing in the primary school classroom.

    However, these hands-on activities are often seen as merely a technique to raise interest, or a nice extra project for children to do before the ‘actual learning’ can begin. But what if this is the wrong way to think about this type of activity? 

    In our 2023 online research seminar series, focused on computing education for primary-aged (K–5) learners, we delved into the most recent research aimed at enhancing learning experiences for students in the earliest stages of education. From a deep dive into teaching variables to exploring the integration of computational thinking, our series has looked at the most effective ways to engage young minds in the subject of computing.

    An adult on a plain background.

    It’s only fitting that in our final seminar in the series, Anaclara Gerosa from the University of Glasgow tackled one of the most fundamental questions in education: how do children actually learn? Beyond the conventional methods, emerging research has been shedding light on a fascinating approach — the concept of grounded cognition. This theory suggests that children don’t merely passively absorb knowledge; they physically interact with it, quite literally ‘grasping’ concepts in the process.

    Grounded cognition, also known in variations as embodied and situated cognition, offers a new perspective on how we absorb and process information. At its core, this theory suggests that all cognitive processes, including language and thought, are rooted in the body’s dynamic interactions with the environment. This notion challenges the conventional view of learning as a purely cognitive activity and highlights the impact of action and simulation.

    A group of learners do physical computing in the primary school classroom.

    There is evidence from many studies in psychology and pedagogy that using hands-on activities can enhance comprehension and abstraction. For instance, finger counting has been found to be essential in understanding numerical systems and mathematical concepts. A recent study in this field has shown that children who are taught basic computing concepts with unplugged methods can grasp abstract ideas from as young as 3. There is therefore an urgent need to understand exactly how we could use grounded cognition methods to teach children computing — which is arguably one of the most abstract subjects in formal education.

    A recent study in this field has shown that children who are taught basic computing concepts with unplugged methods can grasp abstract ideas from as young as 3.

    Anaclara is part of a group of researchers at the University of Glasgow who are currently developing a new approach to structuring computing education. Their EIFFEL (Enacted Instrumented Formal Framework for Early Learning in Computing) model suggests a progression from enacted to formal activities.

    Following this model, in the early years of computing education, learners would primarily engage with activities that allow them to work with tangible 3D objects or manipulate intangible objects, for instance in Scratch. Increasingly, students will be able to perform actions in an instrumented or virtual environment which will require the knowledge of abstract symbols but will not yet require the knowledge of programming languages. Eventually, students will have developed the knowledge and skills to engage in fully formal environments, such as writing advanced code.

    A graph illustrating the EIFFEL model for early computing.

    In a recent literature review, Anaclara and her colleagues looked at existing research into using grounded cognition theory in computing education. Although several studies report the use of grounded approaches, for instance by using block-based programming, robots, toys, or construction kits, the focus is generally on looking at how concrete objects can be used in unplugged activities due to specific contexts, such as a limited availability of computing devices.

    The next steps in this area are looking at how activities that specifically follow the EIFFEL framework can enhance children’s learning. 

    You can watch Anaclara’s seminar here: 

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgjSKhqRHDU?feature=oembed&w=500&h=281]

    You can also access the presentation slides here.

    Research into grounded cognition activities in computer science is ongoing, but we encourage you to try incorporating more hands-on activities when teaching younger learners and observing the effects yourself. Here are a few ideas on how to get started:

    In 2024, we are exploring different ways to teach and learn programming, with and without AI tools. In our next seminar, on 13 February at 17:00 GMT, Majeed Kazemi from the University of Toronto will be joining us to discuss whether AI-powered code generators can help K–12 students learn to program in Python. All of our online seminars are free and open to everyone. Sign up and we’ll send you the link to join on the day.

    Website: LINK

  • Arduino Education at Bett 2024: Inspiring STEAM innovation

    Arduino Education at Bett 2024: Inspiring STEAM innovation

    Reading Time: 2 minutes

    Discover the future of K-12 & HE at Bett 2024 with Arduino Education

    Arduino Education will be back at Bett 2024, the global stage for education innovation, from January 24th-26th at ExCel London. 

    Our booth (which you’ll find in Bett Hall, Stand NJ12) will be a hub of creativity and excitement, where you can immerse yourself in the world of STEAM education and discover how Arduino empowers students to become inventors, innovators, and problem-solvers.

    Meet our new educational solutions

    At Bett, you’ll be the first to meet the new Arduino robot and have an interactive demo of our new Programmable Logic Controller, the Arduino PLC Starter Kit. Get hands-on with both of these new kits to explore their unique features and see how they can enhance your classroom for both K-12 and higher education. 

    You’ll also have the opportunity to try out the Arduino Cloud for Schools and all its new features, as well as seeing our collaboration with IED Rome and Sapienza Schools, which offers secondary age teaching tools designed to improve physics learning with the Arduino Science Kit R3.

    Connect with our thriving teacher community

    Create connections with fellow Arduino teachers and exchange ideas, strategies, and resources that will fuel your STEAM teaching journey. 

    Come and meet our team

    Join our team of passionate educators and STEAM enthusiasts who are eager to share their expertise and guide you through our solutions. You’ll get practical tips and strategies for incorporating Arduino into your classroom, ensuring that every student has the opportunity to experience the transformative power of STEAM education.

    Will we be award winners?

    Arduino Education has been recognized as a finalist in not one, but THREE categories for the Bett Awards 2024!

    • COMPANY OF THE YEAR: We’re incredibly proud of the work our team has done to bring us this far.
    • COLLABORATION WITH A SCHOOL: Our partnership with Colegio San Jose de Las Vegas in Colombia for the Medellin Challenge.
    • BETT INNOVATION AWARD: Our work in IoT education, specifically with the Arduino Cloud for Schools, the Explore IoT Kit, and the Greenhouse Kit, is being acknowledged as a leading force in educational innovation.

    Will we win? We’ll find out at Bett!

    We look forward to seeing you at stand NJ12 in the Bett Hall.

    The post Arduino Education at Bett 2024: Inspiring STEAM innovation appeared first on Arduino Blog.

    Website: LINK

  • Evolving our online courses to help more people be computing educators

    Evolving our online courses to help more people be computing educators

    Reading Time: 4 minutes

    Since launching our free online courses about computing on the edX platform back in August, we’ve been training course facilitators and analysing the needs of educators around the world. We want every course participant to have a great experience learning with us — read on to find out what we’re doing right now and into 2024 to ensure this.

    Workshop attendees at a table.

    Online courses for all adults who support young people

    Educators of all kinds are key for supporting children and young people to engage with computing technology and develop digital skills. You might be a professional teacher, or a parent, volunteer, youth worker, librarian… there are so many roles in which people share knowledge with young learners.

    Young people and an adult mentor at a computer at Coolest Projects Ireland 2023.

    That’s why our online courses are designed to support any kind of educator to:

    • Understand the full breadth of topics within computing
    • Discover how to introduce computing to young people in clear and exciting ways that are grounded in the latest research

    We are constantly improving our online courses based on your feedback, the latest education research, and the insights our team members gain through supporting you on your course learning journeys. Three principles guide these improvements: accessibility, scalability, and sustainability. 

    Making our courses more relevant and accessible

    Our online courses are used by people who live around the world and bring various knowledge and experiences. Some participants are classroom teachers, others have computing experience from their job and want to volunteer at a kids’ coding club, and some may be parents who want to support their children. It’s important to us that our courses are relevant and accessible to all kinds of adult learners. 

    A parent and child work together at a Raspberry Pi computer.

    We’re currently working to: 

    • Simplify the English in the courses for participants who speak it as a second language
    • Adapt the course activities for specific settings where participants help young people learn so that e.g. teachers see how the activities work in the classroom, and volunteers who run coding clubs see how they work in club sessions
    • Ensure our course facilitators have experience in a range of different settings including coding clubs, and in a variety of different contexts around the world

    Making our courses useful for more groups of people

    When we think about the scalability of our courses, we think about how to best support as many educators around the world as possible. If we can make the jobs of all educators easier, whatever their setting is like, then we are making the right choices.

    An educator helps two young people at a computer.

    We’re currently working to: 

    • Talk with the global network of educators we’re a part of to better understand what works for them so we can reflect that in the courses
    • Include a wider range of examples for settings beyond the classroom in the courses
    • Adapt our courses so they are relevant to participants with various needs while sustaining the high quality of the overall learning experience

    Making the learning from our courses sustainable

    The educators who take our courses work to achieve amazing things, and this means they are often busy. That they take the time to complete one of our courses to learn new things is a commitment we want to make sure is rewarded. The learning you get from participating in our online courses should continue to benefit you far beyond the time you spend completing it. This is what we mean by sustainability.

    Kenyan educators work on a physical computing project.

    We’re currently working to: 

    • Lay out clear learning pathways so you can build on the knowledge you gain in one course in the next course
    • Offer course resources that are easy to access after you’ve completed the course
    • Explore ways to build communities around our courses where you can share successes and learning outcomes with your fellow participants

    Learn with us, and help us design better courses for you

    Our work to improve the accessibility, scalability, and sustainability of our courses will continue into 2024, and these three principles will likely be part of our online training strategy for the following year too. 

    If you’d like to support young people in your life to learn about computing and digital technologies, take one of our free courses now and learn something new. We have twenty courses available right now and they are totally free.

    We are also looking for adult testers for new course content. So if you’re any kind of educator and would like to test upcoming online course content and share your feedback and experiences, please send us a message with the subject ‘Educator training’. 

    Website: LINK

  • Arduino Education is a three-time Bett Awards finalist for 2024

    Arduino Education is a three-time Bett Awards finalist for 2024

    Reading Time: 4 minutes

    We are proud to announce that Arduino Education has been shortlisted as a finalist in three categories for the Bett Awards 2024:

    • COMPANY OF THE YEAR (MORE THAN £3M)
    • COLLABORATION WITH A SCHOOL for the Medellin Challenge with Colegio San Jose de Las Vegas in Colombia
    • Bett INNOVATION AWARD for innovation on the Internet of Things in education with the Arduino Cloud for Schools, the Explore IoT Kit, and the Greenhouse Kit

    The Bett Awards are a celebration of the inspiring creativity and innovation that can be found throughout technology for education. These awards recognize Arduino Education’s efforts  to nurture future talent by bringing easy to use, affordable, and skill-oriented solutions for students at school and university.

    Let’s take a look at each of the award categories we’ve been nominated for in turn…

    Innovation Award 

    Why have we been shortlisted? At Arduino Education, we epitomize the fusion of cutting-edge technology with purposeful learning. Our revamped Arduino Cloud for Schools revolutionizes STEAM education by merging coding, IoT, and accessibility into a comprehensive ecosystem. 

    Meanwhile, the renewed Explore IoT Kit R2 is not just technologically advanced; it also aligns with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, promoting practical solutions to global challenges. The kit empowers students to delve deep into data communication, management, and societal problem-solving.

    Our innovative Greenhouse Kit addresses urban farming issues, turning students into active participants in sustainability endeavors. 

    Across our products and solutions, Arduino Education’s commitment isn’t merely to educate; it’s to inspire, empower, and lead, paving the way for a brighter, informed, and sustainable future. 

    Our nomination for the Innovator of the Year award is a testament to this enduring commitment to innovation that truly matters.

    Collaboration with a School 

    Arduino Education collaborated with the Colegio San Jose de Las Vegas for the Medellín Challenge 2023. Students participating in the challenge experienced a transformative arc during an intensive three months. From the early days of choosing their challenges to turning their innovative ideas into tangible prototypes, their journey was supported at every step by Arduino Education’s state-of-the-art technology resources, including the Explore IoT Kit and the Arduino Cloud. 

    An experienced Arduino Education trainer teamed up with the teachers and students during the prototyping stage to provide direct in-person technical support throughout the design phase, and provide ongoing feedback.

    Just some of the sustainability solutions that the teams of students devised with Arduino included:

    • Building a smart farm and designing tutorials so children in the Medellín communities could learn how to grow their own food, and potentially create a way to make an income.
    • Creating a virtual platform linked to a solar-powered car that visits local communities to bring learning experiences, such as environmental, technological, and entrepreneurship education to children.
    • A device that makes use of the water lost from natural sources in different activities: washing clothes, watering gardens and fish tanks. 
    • Building a smart farm and designing tutorials so children in the Medellín communities could learn how to grow their own food, and potentially create a way to make an income.
    • Creating a virtual platform linked to a solar-powered car that visits local communities to bring learning experiences, such as environmental, technological, and entrepreneurship education to children.
    • A device that makes use of the water lost from natural sources in different activities: washing clothes, watering gardens and fish tanks. 

    Company of the Year (more than £3m)

    There’s a significant gap between education and the job market, where technology, methodology, and mindset for educating future talents are generally missing. Arduino Education strives to bring easy-to-use, affordable, and skill-oriented solutions to bridge this gap. We want to continuously redefine the horizons of STEAM education and push for innovation in the classroom. 

    Always looking forward, we pioneer educational tools that reflect real-world applications, like our collaboration on machine learning content with Harvard, and our Explore IoT Kit which ties to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. We champion diversity, sustainability, and corporate social responsibility. Efforts such as supporting ‘Jenga Labs‘ in Ghana and local manufacturing demonstrate our broader vision.

    Arduino Education’s focus on customer service and a thriving teacher community are testaments to our commitment to the education sector. 

    Dan Hubacz, a U.S. high school teacher, sums up Arduino Education’s approach perfectly: “I want my students to be working on things that are real and matter to them, and that also potentially have an impact on the community.”

    What’s next for Arduino Education

    Further to receiving this recognition from the Bett Awards for our continuous focus on innovative solutions, we’d like to say thank you to all the students and educators who use Arduino Education kits and solutions in their classrooms. It’s your enthusiasm and desire for learning that makes this possible and worthwhile. 

    With the newly-released Science Kit R3 and even more exciting kits to come in 2024, we’ll keep striving to innovate, bridge the STEM skill gaps, and nurture future talent.

    The post Arduino Education is a three-time Bett Awards finalist for 2024 appeared first on Arduino Blog.

    Website: LINK

  • Coding futures: Celebrating our educational partnership in Telangana

    Coding futures: Celebrating our educational partnership in Telangana

    Reading Time: 6 minutes

    On September 29 2023, amidst much excitement and enthusiasm, a significant event took place at a unique school in Moinabad, Telangana: the teams of the Raspberry Pi Foundation and Telangana Social Welfare Residential Educational Institutions Society (TSWREIS) gathered to celebrate our partnership on the esteemed Coding Academy of TSWREIS.

    The welcoming ceremony at the opening event of the Coding Academy in Telangana.
    A celebratory ceremony at the opening event of the Coding Academy in Telangana.

    This event marked a special project for us where we are piloting a distinctive, progression-based computing curriculum in a government school and a degree college in India.

    A group of female students at the Coding Academy in Telangana.

    Partnering with TSWREIS to bring computing education to Telangana

    At the Foundation, our goal is to work closely with schools, tailoring our offerings to their contexts. Our objective is to design and evaluate unique learning experiences by integrating content from our diverse range of high-quality educational products. Through these efforts, we aim to drive significant advancements in education and technology, benefiting both students and education systems across the world.

    Two female students at the Coding Academy in Telangana.
    A group of male students at the Coding Academy in Telangana.

    TSWREIS manages 268 residential educational institutions in Telangana, with a primary focus on delivering quality education to under-resourced young people, particularly children from scheduled castes and tribes in rural areas. Among these institutions is the Coding Academy school, located in Moinabad, which operates as a fully residential co-ed school for grades 6 to 12, accommodating around 800 students. Additionally, TSWREIS oversees another centre of excellence, the Coding Academy degree college in Shamirpet catering to 600 undergraduate female students.

    the Coding Academy in Telangana.
    A computing classroom at the Coding Academy in Telangana.

    We joined forces with TSWREIS to form a collaborative partnership with their Coding Academy units at both high school and college. We’re committed to sharing our expertise in computing and coding curriculum for students from Grade 6 to intermediate at the school, and across all courses at the college.

    Our computing curriculum encompasses computer science, information technology, and digital literacy, and all its materials have been thoroughly researched and tested in the UK. Based on our 12 pedagogical principles, our curriculum ensures a project-based and holistic approach to learning. We also plan to provide national and international avenues for the Coding Academy students to showcase their learnings, for example through Coolest Projects, the world-leading, global technology showcase for young creators that we host every year. 

    The exciting model for our partnership with TSWREIS

    We took on the challenge of directly delivering a comprehensive curriculum at the Coding Academy school and college through our own educators, exclusively hired and trained for this project. This is an exciting new approach for us, because up to this point, we have never directly delivered a curriculum anywhere in the world. However, we know we have created a world-class computing curriculum for educators in formal (and non-formal) settings, and we have many years’ experience of training teachers, so we are well-prepared to face this project and its potential challenges head-on and make it a success.

    A group of people from the Raspberry Pi Foundation at the Coding Academy in Telangana.

    To begin the project, our team members based in India conducted a thorough study of the Coding Academy students’ interests and learning levels. Based on this, our Curriculum team in the UK and India customised and localised the content in our curriculum. We will be observing the curriculum’s delivery in classrooms and collecting students’ responses, and based on this data we’ll further refine the localised curriculum. 

    Throughout the project’s lifespan, we’ll measure the effectiveness of our curriculum and the impact of learning on the students. To do this, we’ll collect data from classroom observations, periodic assessments, and focused group discussions with students and educators.

    A group of male students at the Coding Academy in Telangana.

    Starting from the second year of the project, we will build capacity within the system. In collaboration with TSWREIS, we’ll select teachers from within the organisation based on their interest and competence, and initiate their training. Our objective is that by the project’s fifth year, TSWREIS will have achieved self-sufficiency in delivering computing education to students at the Coding Academy as well as other institutions in its purview.

    The promise of this project for our work in India

    We began delivering lessons at the Coding Academy college and school in July, and it’s worth mentioning that it’s been a rollercoaster ride so far. We’ve been working closely with the TSWREIS team to equip both the academic units with the resources needed for seamless implementation of the project. Our India-based team has been able to ensure continuity in the project’s momentum and plug every gap, and is working tirelessly to make this big, challenging, and exciting project blossom and succeed. When it comes to the students’ energy, enthusiasm, and the sparkle in their eyes for their learning, it’s unmatched, and everyone feels proud of their achievements so far.

    Three female students at the Coding Academy in Telangana.

    This work with TSWREIS holds immense importance for us, representing our dedication to shaping a brighter educational landscape especially for young people from under-resourced communities. We hope to replicate similar initiatives across various regions in India, enabling widespread access to quality education. We also aspire to take forward our initiatives in much larger dimensions for the entirety of India. 

    Students welcome Rachel Bennett at the Coding Academy in Telangana.

    In addition to our partnership with TSWREIS, we are actively engaged in several other impactful projects in India, such as our partnership with Mo School Abhiyan in Odisha to serve the government’s schools across Odisha state, and our collaboration with Pratham Foundation, which is helping us reach under-resourced communities and furthering our commitment to enhancing educational experiences.

    We look towards the future

    In reflection, the voices at the launch event on September 29 echoed the anticipation and optimism that filled the air on that memorable day. Chief guests who graciously attended the event were Shri. E Naveen Nicholas, IAS, Secretary at TSWREIS & TTWREIS, and Rachel Bennett, our Managing Director at the Raspberry Pi Foundation. Heartfelt gratitude to them for their presence and blessings. We also extend our thanks to our funding partner in this work, Ezrah Charitable Trust, and our delivery partners for their invaluable support.

    The group of people from the Raspberry Pi Foundation and TSWREIS at the Coding Academy in Telangana.

    The energy felt on the event day continues to drive our determination to do the work that lies ahead. As we look forward to the future, our hope and the hope of both the Coding Academy team and students are aligned: hope for a brighter, technologically empowered future, where education becomes a beacon of opportunity for all.

    Website: LINK

  • What does AI mean for computing education?

    What does AI mean for computing education?

    Reading Time: 9 minutes

    It’s been less than a year since ChatGPT catapulted generative artificial intelligence (AI) into mainstream public consciousness, reigniting the debate about the role that these powerful new technologies will play in all of our futures.

    ‘Will AI save or destroy humanity?’ might seem like an extreme title for a podcast, particularly if you’ve played with these products and enjoyed some of their obvious limitations. The reality is that we are still at the foothills of what AI technology can achieve (think World Wide Web in the 1990s), and lots of credible people are predicting an astonishing pace of progress over the next few years, promising the radical transformation of almost every aspect of our lives. Comparisons with the Industrial Revolution abound.

    At the same time, there are those saying it’s all moving too fast; that regulation isn’t keeping pace with innovation. One of the UK’s leading AI entrepreneurs, Mustafa Suleyman, said recently: “If you don’t start from a position of fear, you probably aren’t paying attention.”

    In a computing classroom, a girl looks at a computer screen.
    What is AI literacy for young people?

    What does all this mean for education, and particularly for computing education? Is there any point trying to teach children about AI when it is all changing so fast? Does anyone need to learn to code anymore? Will teachers be replaced by chatbots? Is assessment as we know it broken?

    If we’re going to seriously engage with these questions, we need to understand that we’re talking about three different things:

    1. AI literacy: What it is and how we teach it
    2. Rethinking computer science (and possibly some other subjects)
    3. Enhancing teaching and learning through AI-powered technologies

    AI literacy: What it is and how we teach it

    For young people to thrive in a world that is being transformed by AI systems, they need to understand these technologies and the role they could play in their lives.

    In a computing classroom, a smiling girl raises her hand.
    Our SEAME model articulates the concepts, knowledge, and skills that are essential ingredients of any AI literacy curriculum.

    The first problem is defining what AI literacy actually means. What are the concepts, knowledge, and skills that it would be useful for a young person to learn?

    The reality is that — with a few notable exceptions — the vast majority of AI literacy resources available today are probably doing more harm than good.

    In the past couple of years there has been a huge explosion in resources that claim to help young people develop AI literacy. Our research team mapped and categorised over 500 resources, and undertaken a systematic literature review to understand what research has been done on K–12 AI classroom interventions (spoiler: not much). 

    The reality is that — with a few notable exceptions — the vast majority of AI literacy resources available today are probably doing more harm than good. For example, in an attempt to be accessible and fun, many materials anthropomorphise AI systems, using human terms to describe them and their functions and thereby perpetuating misconceptions about what AI systems are and how they work.

    What emerged from this work at the Raspberry Pi Foundation is the SEAME model, which articulates the concepts, knowledge, and skills that are essential ingredients of any AI literacy curriculum. It separates out the social and ethical, application, model, and engine levels of AI systems — all of which are important — and gets specific about age-appropriate learning outcomes for each. 

    This research has formed the basis of Experience AI (experience-ai.org), a suite of resources, lessons plans, videos, and interactive learning experiences created by the Raspberry Pi Foundation in partnership with Google DeepMind, which is already being used in thousands of classrooms.

    If we’re serious about AI literacy for young people, we have to get serious about AI literacy for teachers.

    Defining AI literacy and developing resources is part of the challenge, but that doesn’t solve the problem of how we get them into the hands and minds of every young person. This will require policy change. We need governments and education system leaders to grasp that a foundational understanding of AI technologies is essential for creating economic opportunity, ensuring that young people have the mindsets to engage positively with technological change, and avoiding a widening of the digital divide. We’ve messed this up before with digital skills. Let’s not do it again.

    Two smiling adults learn about computing at desktop computers.
    Teacher professional development is key to AI literacy for young people.

    More than anything, we need to invest in teachers and their professional development. While there are some fantastic computing teachers with computer science qualifications, the reality is that most of the computing lessons taught anywhere on the planet are taught by a non-specialist teacher. That is even more so the case for anything related to AI. If we’re serious about AI literacy for young people, we have to get serious about AI literacy for teachers. 

    Rethinking computer science 

    Alongside introducing AI literacy, we also need to take a hard look at computer science. At the very least, we need to make sure that computer science curricula include machine learning models, explaining how they constitute a new paradigm for computing, and give more emphasis to the role that data will play in the future of computing. Adding anything new to an already packed computer science curriculum means tough choices about what to deprioritise to make space.

    Elephants in the Serengeti.
    One of our Experience AI Lessons revolves around the us of AI technology to study the Serengeti ecosystem.

    And, while we’re reviewing curricula, what about biology, geography, or any of the other subjects that are just as likely to be revolutionised by big data and AI? As part of Experience AI, we are launching some of the first lessons focusing on ecosystems and AI, which we think should be at the heart of any modern biology curriculum. 

    Some are saying young people don’t need to learn how to code. It’s an easy political soundbite, but it just doesn’t stand up to serious scrutiny.

    There is already a lively debate about the extent to which the new generation of AI technologies will make programming as we know it obsolete. In January, the prestigious ACM journal ran an opinion piece from Matt Welsh, founder of an AI-powered programming start-up, in which he said: “I believe the conventional idea of ‘writing a program’ is headed for extinction, and indeed, for all but very specialised applications, most software, as we know it, will be replaced by AI systems that are trained rather than programmed.”

    Computer science students at a desktop computer in a classroom.
    Writing computer programs is an essential part of learning how to analyse problems in computational terms.

    With GitHub (now part of Microsoft) claiming that their pair programming technology, Copilot, is now writing 46 percent of developers’ code, it’s perhaps not surprising that some are saying young people don’t need to learn how to code. It’s an easy political soundbite, but it just doesn’t stand up to serious scrutiny. 

    Even if AI systems can improve to the point where they generate consistently reliable code, it seems to me that it is just as likely that this will increase the demand for more complex software, leading to greater demand for more programmers. There is historical precedent for this: the invention of abstract programming languages such as Python dramatically simplified the act of humans providing instructions to computers, leading to more complex software and a much greater demand for developers. 

    A child codes a Spiderman project at a laptop during a Code Club session.
    Learning to program will help young people understand how the world around them is being transformed by AI systems.

    However these AI-powered tools develop, it will still be essential for young people to learn the fundamentals of programming and to get hands-on experience of writing code as part of any credible computer science course. Practical experience of writing computer programs is an essential part of learning how to analyse problems in computational terms; it brings the subject to life; it will help young people understand how the world around them is being transformed by AI systems; and it will ensure that they are able to shape that future, rather than it being something that is done to them.

    Enhancing teaching and learning through AI-powered technologies

    Technology has already transformed learning. YouTube is probably the most important educational innovation of the past 20 years, democratising both the creation and consumption of learning resources. Khan Academy, meanwhile, integrated video instruction into a learning experience that gamified formative assessment. Our own edtech platform, Ada Computer Science, combines comprehensive instructional materials, a huge bank of questions designed to help learning, and automated marking and feedback to make computer science easier to teach and learn. Brilliant though these are, none of them have even begun to harness the potential of AI systems like large language models (LLMs).

    The challenge for all of us working in education is how we ensure that ethics and privacy are at the centre of the development of [AI-powered edtech].

    One area where I think we’ll see huge progress is feedback. It’s well-established that good-quality feedback makes a huge difference to learning, but a teacher’s ability to provide feedback is limited by their time. No one is seriously claiming that chatbots will replace teachers, but — if we can get the quality right — LLM applications could provide every child with unlimited, on-demand feedback. AI-powered feedback — not giving students the answers, but coaching, suggesting, and encouraging in the way that great teachers already do — could be transformational.

    Two adults learn about computing at desktop computers.
    The challenge for all of us working in education is how we ensure that ethics and privacy are at the centre of the development of AI-powered edtech.

    We are already seeing edtech companies racing to bring new products and features to market that leverage LLMs, and my prediction is that the pace of that innovation is going to increase exponentially over the coming years. The challenge for all of us working in education is how we ensure that ethics and privacy are at the centre of the development of these technologies. That’s important for all applications of AI, but especially so in education, where these systems will be unleashed directly on young people. How much data from students will an AI system need to access? Can that data — aggregated from millions of students — be used to train new models? How can we communicate transparently the limitations of the information provided back to students?

    Ultimately, we need to think about how parents, teachers, and education systems (the purchasers of edtech products) will be able to make informed choices about what to put in front of students. Standards will have an important role to play here, and I think we should be exploring ideas such as an AI kitemark for edtech products that communicate whether they meet a set of standards around bias, transparency, and privacy. 

    Realising potential in a brave new world

    We may very well be entering an era in which AI systems dramatically enhance the creativity and productivity of humanity as a species. Whether the reality lives up to the hype or not, AI systems are undoubtedly going to be a big part of all of our futures, and we urgently need to figure out what that means for education, and what skills, knowledge, and mindsets young people need to develop in order to realise their full potential in that brave new world. 

    That’s the work we’re engaged in at the Raspberry Pi Foundation, working in partnership with individuals and organisations from across industry, government, education, and civil society.

    If you have ideas and want to get involved in shaping the future of computing education, we’d love to hear from you.

    This article will also appear in issue 22 of Hello World magazine, which focuses on teaching and AI. We are publishing this new issue on Monday 23 October. Sign up for a free digital subscription to get the PDF straight to your inbox on the day.

    Website: LINK

  • Young children’s ScratchJr coding projects: Assessment and support

    Young children’s ScratchJr coding projects: Assessment and support

    Reading Time: 5 minutes

    Block-based programming applications like Scratch and ScratchJr provide millions of children with an introduction to programming; they are a fun and accessible way for beginners to explore programming concepts and start making with code. ScratchJr, in particular, is designed specifically for children between the ages of 5 and 7, enabling them to create their own interactive stories and games. So it’s no surprise that they are popular tools for primary-level (K–5) computing teachers and learners. But how can teachers assess coding projects built in ScratchJr, where the possibilities are many and children are invited to follow their imagination?

    Aim Unahalekhala
    Aim Unahalekhala

    In the latest seminar of our series on computing education for primary-aged children, attendees heard about two research studies that explore the use of ScratchJr in K–2 education. The speaker, Apittha (Aim) Unahalekhala, is a graduate researcher at the DevTech Research Group at Tufts University. The two studies looked at assessing young children’s ScratchJr coding projects and understanding how they create projects. Both of the studies were part of the Coding as Another Language project, which sees computer science as a new literacy for the 21st century, and is developing a literacy-based coding curriculum for K–2.

    How to evaluate children’s ScratchJr projects

    ScratchJr offers children 28 blocks to choose from when creating a coding project. Some of these are simple, such as blocks that determine the look of a character or setting, while others are more complex, such as messaging blocks and loops. Children can combine the blocks in many different ways to create projects of different levels of complexity.

    A child select blocks for a ScratchJr project on a tablet.
    Selecting blocks for a ScratchJr project

    At the start of her presentation, Aim described a rubric that she and her colleagues at DevTech have developed to assess three key aspects of a ScratchJr coding project. These aspects are coding concepts, project design, and purposefulness.

    • Coding concepts in ScratchJr are sequencing, repeats, events, parallelism, coordination, and the number parameter
    • Project design includes elaboration (number of settings and characters, use of speech bubbles) and originality (character and background customisation, animated looks, sounds)

    The rubric lets educators or researchers:

    • Assess learners’ ability to use their coding knowledge to create purposeful and creative ScratchJr projects
    • Identify the level of mastery of each of the three key aspects demonstrated within the project
    • Identify where learners might need more guidance and support
    The elements covered by the ScratchJr project evaluation rubric.
    The elements covered by the ScratchJr project evaluation rubric. Click to enlarge.

    As part of the study, Aim and her colleagues collected coding projects from two schools at the start, middle, and end of a curriculum unit. They used the rubric to evaluate the coding projects and found that project scores increased over the course of the unit.

    They also found that, overall, the scores for the project design elements were higher than those for coding concepts: many learners enjoyed spending lots of time designing their characters and settings, but made less use of other features. However, the two scores were correlated, meaning that learners who devoted a lot of time to the design of their project also got higher scores on coding concepts.

    The rubric is a useful tool for any teachers using ScratchJr with their students. If you want to try it in your classroom, the validated rubric is free to download from the DevTech research group’s website.

    How do young children create a project?

    The rubric assesses the output created by a learner using ScratchJr. But learning is a process, not just an end outcome, and the final project might not always be an accurate reflection of a child’s understanding.

    By understanding more about how young children create coding projects, we can improve teaching and curriculum design for early childhood computing education.

    In the second study Aim presented, she set out to explore this question. She conducted a qualitative observation of children as they created coding projects at different stages of a curriculum unit, and used Google Analytics data to conduct a quantitative analysis of the steps the children took.

    A Scratch project creation process involving iteration.
    A project creation process involving iteration

    Her findings highlighted the importance of encouraging young learners to explore the full variety of blocks available, both by guiding them in how to find and use different blocks, and by giving them the time and tools they need to explore on their own.

    She also found that different teaching strategies are needed at different stages of the curriculum unit to support learners. This helps them to develop their understanding of both basic and advanced blocks, and to explore, customise, and iterate their projects.

    Early-unit strategy:

    • Encourage free play to self-discover different functions, especially basic blocks

    Mid-unit strategy:

    • Set plans on how long children will need on customising vs coding
    • More guidance on the advanced blocks, then let children explore

    End-of-unit strategy:

    • Provide multiple sessions to work
    • Promote iteration by encouraging children to keep improving code and adding details
    Teaching strategies for different stages of a ScratchJr curriculum.
    Teaching strategies for different stages of the curriculum

    You can watch Aim’s full presentation here:

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=–8mzzrZ0ME?feature=oembed&w=500&h=281]

    You can also access the seminar slides here.

    Join our next seminar on primary computing education

    At our next seminar, we welcome Aman Yadav (Michigan State University), who will present research on computational thinking in primary school. The session will take place online on Tuesday 7 November at 17:00 UK time. Don’t miss out and sign up now:

    To find out more about connecting research to practice for primary computing education, you can find the rest of our upcoming monthly seminars on primary (K–5) teaching and learning and watch the recordings of previous seminars in this series.

    Website: LINK

  • Discover the world of physics, for real – with the new Arduino Science Kit R3!

    Discover the world of physics, for real – with the new Arduino Science Kit R3!

    Reading Time: 2 minutes

    Stephen Hawking once said, “No one undertakes research in physics with the intention of winning a prize. It is the joy of discovering something no one knew before.” That joy is exactly what we hope to ignite with Arduino’s Science Kit R3, bridging theory with practical exploration with a complete toolbox that science teachers can use to develop hands-on and engaging STEM experiments in the classroom. 

    From the relationship between color and temperature to the effects of electrical currents on magnetic fields, the kit provides a comprehensive learning experience that allows students to interact with the very core of scientific investigations – also through real-time data collection and analysis. By measuring, recording, and interpreting data with the Arduino Science Journal app, the learning process becomes interactive and dynamic.

    [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xGcwGFX5p0?feature=oembed&w=500&h=281]

    So, how does the Science Kit R3 make physics the coolest subject in school?

    • Enhanced understanding of physics: No more passive reading. Dive deep into physics, understanding complex concepts through hands-on experimentation.
    • Promotion of scientific literacy: The real-time data collection and analysis features nurture scientific inquiry skills, priming students to thrive in our data-driven world.
    • User-friendly design: No prior coding or electronics knowledge is required, ensuring educators and students can jump straight into experiments with minimal setup.
    • Designed for education: The kit has been designed with teachers, for teachers and students.
    • Critical thinking stimulation: The kit’s design encourages students to apply what they’ve learned to real-world situations, sharpening their problem-solving abilities.
    • Self-directed learning: Through open-ended investigations, we’re giving students the reins, allowing their curiosity to guide their learning process.
    • Comprehensive teaching support: The Science Kit R3 isn’t just for students. We’ve also equipped educators with an intuitive guide to streamline the teaching process.

    If, like us, you believe that learning is most effective when it’s interactive, relevant, and fun, the Science Kit R3 is for you! You can find more information here or sign up to get early access. 

    The post Discover the world of physics, for real – with the new Arduino Science Kit R3! appeared first on Arduino Blog.

    Website: LINK

  • Digital making with Raspberry Pis in primary schools in Sarawak, Malaysia

    Digital making with Raspberry Pis in primary schools in Sarawak, Malaysia

    Reading Time: 6 minutes

    Dr Sue Sentance, Director of our Raspberry Pi Computing Education Research Centre at the University of Cambridge, shares what she learned on a recent visit in Malaysia to understand more about the approach taken to computing education in the state of Sarawak.

    Dr Sue Sentance

    Computing education is a challenge around the world, and it is fascinating to see how different countries and education systems approach it. I recently had the opportunity to attend an event organised by the government of Sarawak, Malaysia, to see first-hand what learners and teachers are achieving thanks to the state’s recent policies.

    Raspberry Pis and training for Sarawak’s primary schools

    In Sarawak, the largest state of Malaysia, the local Ministry of Education, Innovation and Talent Development is funding an ambitious project through which all of Sarawak’s primary schools are receiving sets of Raspberry Pis. Learners use these as desktop computers and to develop computer science skills and knowledge, including the skills to create digital making projects.

    The state of Sarawak, Malaysia circled on a map.
    Sarawak is the largest state of Malaysia, situated on the island of Borneo

    Crucially, the ministry is combining this hardware distribution initiative with a three-year programme of professional development for primary school teachers. They receive training known as the Raspberry Pi Training Programme, which starts with Scratch programming and incorporates elements of physical computing with the Raspberry Pis and sensors.

    To date the project has provided 9436 kits (including Raspberry Pi computer, case, monitor, mouse, and keyboard) to schools, and training for over 1200 teachers.

    The STEM Trailblazers event

    In order to showcase what has been achieved through the project so far, students and teachers were invited to use their schools’ Raspberry Pis to create projects to prototype solutions to real problems faced by their communities, and to showcase these projects at a special STEM Trailblazers event.

    Sue Sentance with a group of participants showcasing their project at the STEM Trailblazers event.
    Sue Sentance with teachers showcasing their projects at the STEM Trailblazers event.

    Geographically, Sarawak is Malaysia’s largest state, but it has a much smaller population than the west of the country. This means that towns and villages are very spread out and teachers and students had large distances to travel to attend the STEM Trailblazers event. To partially address this, the event was held in two locations simultaneously, Kuching and Miri, and talks were live-streamed between both venues.

    STEM Trailblazers featured a host of talks from people involved in the initiative. I was very honoured to be invited as a guest speaker, representing both the University of Cambridge and the Raspberry Pi Foundation as the Director of the Raspberry Pi Computing Education Research Centre.

    Solving real-world problems

    The Raspberry Pi projects at STEM Trailblazers were entered into a competition, with prizes for students and teachers. Most projects had been created using Scratch to control the Raspberry Pi as well as a range of sensors.

    The children and teachers who participated came from both rural and urban areas, and it was clear that the issues they had chosen to address were genuine problems in their communities.

    Many of the projects I saw related to issues that schools faced around heat and hydration: a Smart Bottle project reminded children to drink regularly, a shade creator project created shade when the temperature got too high, a teachers’ project told students that they could no longer play outside when the temperature exceeded 35 degrees, and a water cooling system project set off sprinklers when the temperature rose. Other themes of the projects were keeping toilets clean, reminding children to eat healthily, and helping children to learn the alphabet. One project that especially intrigued me was an alert system for large and troublesome birds that were a problem for rural schools.

    Participants showcasing their project at the STEM Trailblazers event.

    The creativity and quality of the projects on show was impressive given that all the students (and many of their teachers) had learned to program very recently, and also had to be quite innovative where they hadn’t been able to access all the hardware they needed to build their creations.

    What we can learn from this initiative

    Everyone involved in this project in Sarawak — including teachers, government representatives, university academics, and industry partners — is really committed to giving children the best opportunities to grow up with an understanding of digital technology. They know this is essential for their professional futures, and also fosters their creativity, independence, and problem-solving skills.

    Young people showcasing their project at the STEM Trailblazers event.

    Over the last ten years, I’ve been fortunate enough to travel widely in my capacity as a computing education researcher, and I’ve seen first-hand a number of the approaches countries are taking to help their young people gain the skills and understanding of computing technologies that they need for their futures.

    It’s good for us to look beyond our own context to understand how countries across the world are preparing their young people to engage with digital technology. No matter how many similarities there are between two places, we can all learn from each other’s initiatives and ideas. In 2021 the Brookings Institution published a global review of how countries are progressing with this endeavour. Organisations such as UNESCO and WEF regularly publish reports that emphasise the importance for countries to develop their citizens’ digital skills, and also advanced technological skills. 

    Young people showcasing their project at the STEM Trailblazers event.

    The Sarawak government’s initiative is grounded in the use of Raspberry Pis as desktop computers for schools, which run offline where schools have no access to the internet. That teachers are also trained to use the Raspberry Pis to support learners to develop hands-on digital making skills is a really important aspect of the project.

    Our commercial subsidiary Raspberry Pi Limited works with a company network of Approved Resellers around the globe; in this case the Malaysian reseller Cytron has been an enormous support in supplying Sarawak’s primary schools with Raspberry Pis and other hardware.

    Schools anywhere in the world can also access the Raspberry Pi Foundation’s free learning and teaching resources, such as curriculum materials, online training courses for teachers, and our magazine for educators, Hello World. We are very proud to support the work being done in Sarawak.

    As for what the future holds for Sarawak’s computing education, at the opening ceremony of the STEM Trailblazers event, the Deputy Minister announced that the event will be an annual occasion. That means every year more students and teachers will be able to come together, share their learning, and get excited about using digital making to solve the problems that matter to them.

    Website: LINK

  • Apply for a free UK teacher’s place at the WiPSCE conference

    Apply for a free UK teacher’s place at the WiPSCE conference

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    From 27 to 29 September 2023, we and the University of Cambridge are hosting the WiPSCE International Workshop on Primary and Secondary Computing Education Research for educators and researchers. This year, this annual conference will take place at Robinson College in Cambridge. We’re inviting all UK-based teachers of computing subjects to apply for one of five ‘all expenses paid’ places at this well-regarded annual event.

    Educators and researchers mingle at a conference.

    You could attend WiPSCE with all expenses paid

    WiPSCE is where teachers and researchers discuss research that’s relevant to teaching and learning in primary and secondary computing education, to teacher training, and to related topics. You can find more information about the conference, including the preliminary programme, at wipsce.org. 

    Educators and researchers listen to a talk at a conference.
    Educators and researchers mingle at a conference.

    As a teacher at the conference, you will:

    • Engage with high-quality international research in the field where you teach
    • Learn ways to use that research to develop your own classroom practice
    • Find out how to become an advocate in your professional community for research-informed approaches to the teaching of computing.

    We are delighted that, thanks to generous funding from a funder, we can offer five free places to UK computing teachers, covering:

    • The registration fee
    • Two nights’ accommodation at Robinson College
    • Up to £500 supply costs paid to your school to cover your teaching
    • Up to £100 travel costs

    The application deadline is Wednesday 19 July.

    The application details

    To be eligible to apply:

    1. You need to be a currently practising, UK-based teacher of Computing (England), Computing Science (Scotland), ICT or Digital Technologies (N. Ireland), or Computer Science (Wales)
    2. Your headteacher needs to be able to provide written confirmation that they are happy for you to attend WiPSCE
    3. You need to be available to attend the whole conference from Wednesday lunchtime to Friday afternoon
    4. You need to be willing to share what you learn from the conference with your colleagues at school and with your broader teaching community, including through writing an article about your experience and its relevance to your teaching for this blog or Hello World magazine

    The application form will ask your for:

    • Your name and contact details
    • Demographic and school information
    • Your teaching experience
    • A statement of up to 500 words on why you’re applying and how you think your teaching practice, your school and your colleagues will benefit from your attendance at WiPSCE (500 words is the maximum, feel free to be concise)

    After the 19 July deadline, we’re aiming to inform you of the outcome of your application on Friday 21 July. 

    Information materials at a conference.
    Participants at the Clubs Conference.

    Your application will be reviewed by the 2023 WiPSCE Chairs:

    Sue and Mareen will:

    • Use the information you share in your form, particularly in your statement
    • Select applicants from a mix of primary and secondary schools, with a mix of years of computing teaching experience, and from a mix of geographic areas

    Join us in strengthening research-informed computing classroom practice

    We’d be delighted to receive your application. Being able to facilitate teachers’ attendance at the conference is very much aligned with our approach to research. Both at the Foundation and the Raspberry Pi Computing Education Research Centre, we’re committed to conducting research that’s directly relevant to schools and teachers, and to working in close collaboration with teachers.

    We hope you are interested in attending WiPSCE and becoming an advocate for research-informed computing education practice. If your application is unsuccessful, we hope you consider coming along anyway. We’re looking forward to meeting you there. In the meantime, you can keep up with WiPSCE news on Twitter.

    Website: LINK

  • The Raspberry Pi Foundation and edX: A new way to learn about teaching computing

    The Raspberry Pi Foundation and edX: A new way to learn about teaching computing

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    We are delighted to announce that we’ve joined the partner network of edX, the global online learning platform. Through our free online courses we enable any educator to teach students about computing and how to create with digital technologies. Since 2017, over 250,000 people have taken our online courses, including 19,000 teachers in England alone. The move to edX builds on this success to help us bring high-quality training to many more teachers worldwide. 

    “I feel that this course was essential in my understanding of where I may take my students on their journey as coders. Extremely practical advice and exercises.” – Online course participant

    Free training to support all educators to teach computing

    Supporting teachers and educators is crucial for our mission to enable young people to realise their full potential through the power of computing and digital technologies. Through our online courses educators can learn the skills, knowledge, and confidence to teach computing in an engaging way. As a result, they empower young people to in turn develop the knowledge, skills, and confidence to use digital technologies effectively, and to be able to critically evaluate these technologies and confidently engage with technological change.

    Twenty of our most popular online courses are now available for sign-up on the edX platform. They will start in two blocks of ten in August and September, respectively. 

    The courses are written with educators in mind, and are also useful to anyone with an interest in computing. The scope of topics is broad and includes programming in Python and Scratch, web development and design, cybersecurity, and machine learning and AI. Our aim is to support educators of all levels of experience to learn about computing, including teachers, club volunteers, youth workers, parents, and more. The courses also draw on content from our Computing Curriculum and provide support for teachers who want to engage their students with Experience AI, our pioneering education initiative about the field of AI.

    “Our partnership with edX gives teachers everywhere a new way to engage with our free, expert-led computing education training. As people design and deploy new and powerful digital technologies, it’s important that no-one is left behind and we are all able to shape technology together.” – Sian Harris, Chief Education Officer at the Raspberry Pi Foundation

    What are our courses like?

    Designed, created, and facilitated by us, each of our courses is a cross-team project. When we put together a course we:

    • Use pedagogical best practice: we lead with concepts, model processes, and include activities that are ready for the classroom; add variety in terms of what content to present as text, images, or videos; and include opportunities to create projects
    • Use language carefully so that it is easy to follow for all participants, as are engaging with us online and may have English as an additional language
    • Put accessibility front and centre so that as many people as possible can learn with us

    Offering our courses on the edX platform gives us flexibility in how we present the content, meaning we can better meet learner needs.

    “Not only did the course present a thorough grounding in computing pedagogy, references were made to supporting research, and the structure and presentation was deceptively straightforward — despite dealing with some tricky concepts.” – Online course participant

    We especially strive to exemplify the pedagogical approaches we recommend to teachers within the courses themselves. For example, semantic waves are woven throughout our learning resources and help learners to unpack new concepts, then repack them into more complex contexts to encourage knowledge acquisition. This teaching strategy, along with many others, is used widely in the courses and in all our teaching and learning resources.

    How you can learn with us on edX

    Taking our courses on edX you can:

    • Learn at your computer or on the edX mobile app
    • Join a course’s dedicated discussion are to discuss and collaborate with other participants
    • Ask our team questions — we’ll have experienced facilitators on hand

    All the courses can be completed at your own pace, in your own time. Based on a commitment of between 1 to 2 hours per week, you can complete our courses in 2 to 4 weeks. You’re also welcome to work through them more quickly (or slowly) if you prefer.

    Browse our selection of free courses and decide what your next learning adventure will be. 

    We look forward to catching up with you in the course discussions on our new platform.

    Website: LINK

  • How we’re learning to explain AI terms for young people and educators

    How we’re learning to explain AI terms for young people and educators

    Reading Time: 6 minutes

    What do we talk about when we talk about artificial intelligence (AI)? It’s becoming a cliche to point out that, because the term “AI” is used to describe so many different things nowadays, it’s difficult to know straight away what anyone means when they say “AI”. However, it’s true that without a shared understanding of what AI and related terms mean, we can’t talk about them, or educate young people about the field.

    A group of young people demonstrate a project at Coolest Projects.

    So when we started designing materials for the Experience AI learning programme in partnership with leading AI unit Google DeepMind, we decided to create short explanations of key AI and machine learning (ML) terms. The explanations are doubly useful:

    1. They ensure that we give learners and teachers a consistent and clear understanding of the key terms across all our Experience AI resources. Within the Experience AI Lessons for Key Stage 3 (age 11–14), these key terms are also correlated to the target concepts and learning objectives presented in the learning graph. 
    2. They help us talk about AI and AI education in our team. Thanks to sharing an understanding of what terms such as “AI”, “ML”, “model”, or “training” actually mean and how to best talk about AI, our conversations are much more productive.

    As an example, here is our explanation of the term “artificial intelligence” for learners aged 11–14:

    Artificial intelligence (AI) is the design and study of systems that appear to mimic intelligent behaviour. Some AI applications are based on rules. More often now, AI applications are built using machine learning that is said to ‘learn’ from examples in the form of data. For example, some AI applications are built to answer questions or help diagnose illnesses. Other AI applications could be built for harmful purposes, such as spreading fake news. AI applications do not think. AI applications are built to carry out tasks in a way that appears to be intelligent.

    You can find 32 explanations in the glossary that is part of the Experience AI Lessons. Here’s an insight into how we arrived at the explanations.

    Reliable sources

    In order to ensure the explanations are as precise as possible, we first identified reliable sources. These included among many others:

    Explaining AI terms to Key Stage 3 learners: Some principles

    Vocabulary is an important part of teaching and learning. When we use vocabulary correctly, we can support learners to develop their understanding. If we use it inconsistently, this can lead to alternate conceptions (misconceptions) that can interfere with learners’ understanding. You can read more about this in our Pedagogy Quick Read on alternate conceptions.

    Some of our principles for writing explanations of AI terms were that the explanations need to: 

    • Be accurate
    • Be grounded in education research best practice
    • Be suitable for our target audience (Key Stage 3 learners, i.e. 11- to 14-year-olds)
    • Be free of terms that have alternative meanings in computer science, such as “algorithm”

    We engaged in an iterative process of writing explanations, gathering feedback from our team and our Experience AI project partners at Google DeepMind, and adapting the explanations. Then we went through the feedback and adaptation cycle until we all agreed that the explanations met our principles.

    A real banana and an image of a banana shown on the screen of a laptop are both labelled "Banana".
    Image: Max Gruber / Better Images of AI / Ceci n’est pas une banane / CC-BY 4.0

    An important part of what emerged as a result, aside from the explanations of AI terms themselves, was a blueprint for how not to talk about AI. One aspect of this is avoiding anthropomorphism, detailed by Ben Garside from our team here.

    As part of designing the the Experience AI Lessons, creating the explanations helped us to:

    • Decide which technical details we needed to include when introducing AI concepts in the lessons
    • Figure out how to best present these technical details
    • Settle debates about where it would be appropriate, given our understanding and our learners’ age group, to abstract or leave out details

    Using education research to explain AI terms

    One of the ways education research informed the explanations was that we used semantic waves to structure each term’s explanation in three parts: 

    1. Top of the wave: The first one or two sentences are a high-level abstract explanation of the term, kept as short as possible, while introducing key words and concepts.
    2. Bottom of the wave: The middle part of the explanation unpacks the meaning of the term using a common example, in a context that’s familiar to a young audience. 
    3. Top of the wave: The final one or two sentences repack what was explained in the example in a more abstract way again to reconnect with the term. The end part should be a repeat of the top of the wave at the beginning of the explanation. It should also add further information to lead to another concept. 

    Most explanations also contain ‘middle of the wave’ sentences, which add additional abstract content, bridging the ‘bottom of the wave’ concrete example to the ‘top of the wave’ abstract content.

    Here’s the “artificial intelligence” explanation broken up into the parts of the semantic wave:

    • Artificial intelligence (AI) is the design and study of systems that appear to mimic intelligent behaviour. (top of the wave)
    • Some AI applications are based on rules. More often now, AI applications are built using machine learning that is said to ‘learn’ from examples in the form of data. (middle of the wave)
    • For example, some AI applications are built to answer questions or help diagnose illnesses. Other AI applications could be built for harmful purposes, such as spreading fake news (bottom of the wave)
    • AI applications do not think. (middle of the wave)
    • AI applications are built to carry out tasks in a way that appears to be intelligent. (top of the wave)
    Our "artificial intelligence" explanation broken up into the parts of the semantic wave.
    Our “artificial intelligence” explanation broken up into the parts of the semantic wave. Red = top of the wave; yellow = middle of the wave; green = bottom of the wave

    Was it worth our time?

    Some of the explanations went through 10 or more iterations before we agreed they were suitable for publication. After months of thinking about, writing, correcting, discussing, and justifying the explanations, it’s tempting to wonder whether I should have just prompted an AI chatbot to generate the explanations for me.

    A window of three images. On the right is a photo of a big tree in a green field in a field of grass and a bright blue sky. The two on the left are simplifications created based on a decision tree algorithm. The work illustrates a popular type of machine learning model: the decision tree. Decision trees work by splitting the population into ever smaller segments. I try to give people an intuitive understanding of the algorithm. I also want to show that models are simplifications of reality, but can still be useful, or in this case visually pleasing. To create this I trained a model to predict pixel colour values, based on an original photograph of a tree.
    Rens Dimmendaal & Johann Siemens / Better Images of AI / Decision Tree reversed / CC-BY 4.0

    I tested this idea by getting a chatbot to generate an explanation of “artificial intelligence” using the prompt “Explain what artificial intelligence is, using vocabulary suitable for KS3 students, avoiding anthropomorphism”. The result included quite a few inconsistencies with our principles, as well as a couple of technical inaccuracies. Perhaps I could have tweaked the prompt for the chatbot in order to get a better result. However, relying on a chatbot’s output would mean missing out on some of the value of doing the work of writing the explanations in collaboration with my team and our partners.

    The visible result of that work is the explanations themselves. The invisible result is the knowledge we all gained, and the coherence we reached as a team, both of which enabled us to create high-quality resources for Experience AI. We wouldn’t have gotten to know what resources we wanted to write without writing the explanations ourselves and improving them over and over. So yes, it was worth our time.

    What do you think about the explanations?

    The process of creating and iterating the AI explanations highlights how opaque the field of AI still is, and how little we yet know about how best to teach and learn about it. At the Raspberry Pi Foundation, we now know just a bit more about that and are excited to share the results with teachers and young people.

    You can access the Experience AI Lessons and the glossary with all our explanations at experience-ai.org. The glossary of AI explanations is just in its first published version: we will continue to improve it as we find out more about how to best support young people to learn about this field.

    Let us know what you think about the explanations and whether they’re useful in your teaching. Onwards with the exciting work of establishing how to successfully engage young people in learning about and creating with AI technologies.

    Website: LINK

  • A vocational digital skills course in Kakuma refugee camp: Connecting to learners’ lives

    A vocational digital skills course in Kakuma refugee camp: Connecting to learners’ lives

    Reading Time: 6 minutes

    We are working in partnership with Amala Education to pilot a vocational skills course for displaced learners aged 16 to 25 in Kakuma refugee camp, Kenya.

    Learners in a classroom learning vocational digital skills.

    Kakuma camp was set up in Kenya in 1992, following a civil war in neighbouring South Sudan in East Africa. Today, 2 million people are living in the camp, and 61% are 18 and younger.

    An aerial view of living spaces in Kakuma refugee camp.

    We’ve designed a 100-hour, 10-week course called Using online digital technologies to create change for the Amala learners in Kakuma camp. The course focused on digital skills including making media and websites, with its content we adapted from our Computing Curriculum. The course pilot was delivered alongside Amala’s High School Diploma programme, which is the first internationally accredited course programme enabling refugee and host community youth to complete their education through flexible study.

    Our thanks go to the Ezrah Charitable Trust for generously funding our work in this partnership.

    Sharing lessons we are learning

    We are learning a lot during this pilot, so we are writing a set of three blogs to share these lessons with you.

    Today’s blog is Amala Education‘s perspective on their learners in Kakuma Camp, the purpose of digital skills education, and the course design and facilitation. We will also share our approach to adapting learning resources for the context of the Amala learners and using data to assess the course, and what other support we’ve put in place to ensure this educational project is self-sustaining.

    Want to make computing education meaningful? Make it connect to learners’ lived experience

    By Polly Akhurst (Co-founder and Co-Executive Director, Amala Education), Louie Barnett (Education Lead, Amala Education) & Ajak Mayen Jok (Programme Coordinator, Amala Education)

    Our learners wanted a course that develops not just their digital literacy, but one that aligns with Amala’s agency-based learning model, which gives young people the skills to improve their communities. Many of our learners have limited experience of using digital tools but a huge desire to develop these skills, which they see as essential to improving their lives and the lives of their community members.

    Learners in a classroom learning vocational digital skills.

    So we knew we needed a course that not just builds learners’ technical knowledge and skills but can also enrich their lived experience.

    How would we do it?

    Enter the Raspberry Pi Foundation team. We combined Amala’s agency-based educational approach with the Raspberry Pi Foundation’s experience in pedagogy and teaching about technology and digital literacy to design a course that truly resonates with our learners.

    Developing a relevant digital skills course

    Before developing the course, the Raspberry Pi Foundation team held focus groups with facilitators and learners in Kakuma camp to understand their needs. This helped them to pitch the 100 hours of course materials at the right level for the learners.

    Learners in a classroom learning vocational digital skills.

    We called the course Using online technologies to create change. It takes the learners on a journey, building their foundation elements of computing and digital literacy. Learners start by finding out how digital devices work using input, process, and output. Then they move on to understanding computer networks. The course includes hands-on activities related to creating media, like filming and reviewing content and creating and choosing sounds to use in a podcast. There is also some light-touch web development with HTML and JavaScript. At the end of the course, learners design and deliver a presentation that reflects the work they’ve completed.

    “Before I joined the course, I really didn’t know much about how to operate technology, but through the learning and the process, now I am able to learn something that will be beneficial for me and the people in my community.” — Learner in Kakuma refugee camp

    Throughout the course, learners use their newly gained skills and knowledge to make their own project aimed at creating positive change. One example project is this website developed by Shyaka Cedric and other learners, which shares how podcasts and remote learning helped their community stay safe and healthy during the pandemic. Another group of learners used their photography and design skills to develop ID cards to keep Amala students safe within the camp. Having an Amala student ID card protects learners because they can prove their identity to their community and the police.

    Facilitators from the camp make the course relatable

    One of the great things about this course is that the Amala facilitators who taught the learners look, speak, and sound like them. Amala facilitators are from within the camp, and that they are relatable is great for learners’ self-confidence.

    A learner and a faciliator in a classroom learning digital skills.

    Having the course facilitated by fellow refugees removes the stigmatisation that the learners are vulnerable and sets the precedent that they can do anything if they put their mind to it.

    “It gave me power of… getting involved with new things…Any challenge that comes my way I am willing to take after the Raspberry Pi class now…” — Learner in Kakuma refugee camp

    While the Raspberry Pi Foundation team worked to make the course content relevant for the learners, our facilitators further localised the content to ensure its relatability for learners. Local contextualisation helps students to understand what they are learning, and to identify with the content — it’s not something out of the blue for them. Localisation is also important because it helps implement one of Amala’s cornerstones: decolonising the African curriculum.

    Digital literacy is an urgent need

    Because the learners in Kakuma camp lead complex social lives and face high levels of precarity, we decided to make the pilot course optional through our existing Diploma programme. We anticipated a modest enrollment rate, but instead over 100 people within the Amala learner community expressed an interest in this 75-person course. This showed us that the value and urgency of digital literacy in refugee communities is more pertinent than ever.

    In a world where a lack of access to technology and digital skills exacerbates existing inequalities, it is critically important for young people who are disadvantaged to access meaningful learning opportunities. As one learner put it:

    “I want to study this course because the current world is a digital world and I would like to acquire the skills to boost my computer skills and be able to help myself by getting a job and transforming the community through the digital world.” — Learner in Kakuma refugee camp

    So what’s happening next?

    We have a blueprint of what works in Kakuma refugee camp, and we are also learning what doesn’t. Bringing these lessons together will help us offer the course to more learners in Kakuma, and adapt the content in other locations, like our site in Amman, Jordan.

    Look out for our follow-up blogs about the support we put in place to enable learners in Kakuma camp to participate in the course, and how we worked to create course content that is suitable for them.

    Website: LINK

  • How can computing education promote an equitable digital future? Ideas from research

    How can computing education promote an equitable digital future? Ideas from research

    Reading Time: 7 minutes

    This year’s International Women’s Day (IWD) focuses on innovation and technology for gender equality. This cause aligns closely with our mission as a charity: to enable young people to realise their full potential through the power of computing and digital technologies. An important part of our mission is to shift the gender balance in computing education.

    Learners in a computing classroom.

    Gender inequality in the digital and computing sector

    As the UN Women’s announcement for IWD 2023 says: “Growing inequalities are becoming increasingly evident in the context of digital skills and access to technologies, with women being left behind as the result of this digital gender divide. The need for inclusive and transformative technology and digital education is therefore crucial for a sustainable future.”

    A woman works at a multi-screen computer setup on a desk.

    According to the UN, women currently hold only 2 in every 10 science, engineering, and information and communication technology jobs globally. Women are a minority of university-level students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) courses, at only 35%, and in information and communication technology courses, at just 3%. This is especially concerning since the WEF predicts that by 2050, 75% of jobs will relate to STEM.

    We see this situation reflected in England: computer science is the secondary school subject with the largest gender gap at A level, with girls accounting for only 15% of students. That’s why over the past three years, we have run a research programme to trial ways to encourage more young women to study Computer Science. The programme, Gender Balance in Computing, has produced useful insights for designing equitable computing education around the world.

    Who belongs in computing?

    The UN says that “across countries, girls are systematically steered away from science and math careers. Teachers and parents, intentionally or otherwise, perpetuate biases around areas of education and work best ‘suited’ for women and men.” There is strong evidence to suggest that the representation of women and girls in computing can be improved by introducing them to computing role models such as female computing students or women in tech careers.

    A learner and educator at a desktop computer.

    Presenting role models was central to the Belonging trial in our Gender Balance in Computing programme. One arm of this trial used resources developed by WISE called My Skills My Life to explore the effect of introducing role models into computing lessons for primary school learners. The trial provided opportunities for learners to speak to women who work in technology. It also offered a quiz to help learners identify their strengths and characteristics and to match them with role models who were similar to them, which research shows is more effective for increasing learners’ confidence.

    A young woman codes in a computing classroom.
    A woman teacher helps a young person with a coding project.
    A girl does physical computing in a classroom.

    Teachers who used the resources reported learners’ increased understanding of the types and range of technology jobs, and a widening of learners’ career aspirations.

    “Learning about computing makes me feel good because it helps me think more about what I want to be.” — Primary school learner in the Belonging trial

    “When [the resources were] showing all of the females in the jobs, nobody went ‘Oh, I didn’t know that a female could do that’, but I think they were amazed by the role of jobs and the fact it was all females doing it.“ — Primary school teacher in the Belonging trial

    Learning together to give everyone a voice

    When teachers and students enter a computing classroom, they bring with them diverse social identities that affect the dynamics of the classroom. Although these dynamics are often unspoken, they can become apparent in which students answer questions or succeed visibly in activities. Without intervention, a dominant group of confident speakers can emerge, and students who are not in this dominant group may lose confidence in their abilities. When teachers set collaborative learning activities that use defined roles or structured discussions, this gives a wider range of students the opportunity to speak up and participate.

    In a computing classroom, a smiling girl raises her hand.

    Pair programming is one such activity that has been used in research studies to improve learner attitudes and confidence towards computing. In pair programming, one learner is the ‘driver’.  They control the keyboard and mouse to write the code. The other learner is the ‘navigator’. They read out the instructions and monitor the code for errors. Learners swap roles regularly, so that both can participate equitably. The Pair Programming trial we conducted as part of Gender Balance in Computing explored the use of this teaching approach with students aged 8 to 11. Feedback from the teachers showed that learners found working in structured pairs engaging.

    “Even those who are maybe a little bit more reluctant… those who put their hands up today and said they still prefer to work independently, they are still all engaging quite clearly in that with their pair and doing it really, really well. However much they say they prefer working independently, I think they clearly showed how much they enjoy it, engage with it. And you know they’re achieving with it — so we should be doing this.” – Primary school teacher in the Pair Programming trial

    Another collaborative teaching approach is peer instruction. In lessons that use peer instruction, students work in small groups to discuss the answer to carefully constructed multiple choice questions. A whole-class discussion then follows. In the Peer Instruction trial with learners aged 12 to 13 in our Gender Balance in Computing programme, we found that this approach was welcomed by the learners, and that it changed which learners offered answers and ideas.

    “I prefer talking in a group because then you get the other side of other people’s thoughts.” – Secondary school learner (female) in the Peer Instruction trial

    “[…] you can have a bit of time to think for yourself then you can bounce ideas off other people.” – Secondary school learner (male) in the Peer Instruction trial

    “I was very pleased that a lot of the girls were doing a lot of the talking.” – Secondary school teacher in the Peer Instruction trial

    We need to do more, and sooner

    Our Gender Balance in Computing research programme showed that no single intervention we trialled significantly increased girls’ engagement in computing or their intention to study it further. Combining several of the approaches we tested may be more impactful. If you’re part of an educational setting where you’d like to adopt multiple approaches at the same time, you can freely access the materials associated with the research programme (see our blog posts about the trials for links).

    In a computing classroom, a girl looks at a computer screen.

    The research programme also showed that age matters: across Gender Balance in Computing, we observed a big difference in intent to study Computing between primary school and secondary school learners (data from ages 8–11 and 12–13). Fewer secondary school learners reported intent to study the subject further, and while this difference was apparent for both girls and boys, it was more marked for girls.

    This finding from England is mirrored by a study the UN Women’s Gender Snapshot 2022 refers to: “A 2020 study of Filipina girls demonstrated that loss of interest in STEM subjects started as early as age 10, when girls began perceiving STEM careers as male-dominated and believing that girls are naturally less adept in STEM subjects. The relative lack of female STEM role models reinforced such perceptions.” That’s why it’s necessary that all primary school learners — no matter what their gender is — have a successful start in the computing classroom, that they encounter role models they can relate to, and that they are supported to engage in computing and creating with technology by their parents, teachers, and communities.

    An educator teaches students to create with technology.

    The Foundation’s vision is that every young person develops the knowledge, skills, and confidence to use digital technologies effectively, and to be able to critically evaluate these technologies and confidently engage with technological change. While making changes inside the computing classroom will be beneficial for gender equality, this is just one aspect of building an equitable digital future. We all need to contribute to creating a world where innovation and technology support gender equity.

    What do you think is needed?

    In all our work, we make sure gender equity is at the forefront, whether that’s in programmes we run for young people, in resources we create for schools, or in partnerships we have, such as with Pratham Education Foundation in India or Team4Tech and Kenya Connect in Wamunyu, Kenya. Computing education is a global challenge, and we are proud to be part of a community that is committed to making it equitable.

    Kenyan educators work on a physical computing project.

    This IWD, we invite you to share your thoughts on what equitable computing education means to you, and what you think is needed to achieve it, whether that’s in your school or club, in your local community, or in your country.

    Website: LINK

  • Teach your learners with The Computing Curriculum

    Teach your learners with The Computing Curriculum

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    Computing combines a very broad mixture of concepts and skills. We work to support any school to teach students about the whole of computing and how to create with digital technologies. A key part of this support is The Computing Curriculum.

    Two girls code at a desktop computer while a female mentor observes them.
    We help schools around the world teach their learners computing.

    The Computing Curriculum: Free and comprehensive

    The Computing Curriculum is our complete bank of free lesson plans and other resources that offer you everything you need to teach computing lessons to all school-aged learners. It helps you cover the full breadth of computing, including computing systems, programming, creating media, data and information, and societal impacts of digital technology.

    Young learners at computers in a classroom.
    A girl in a university computing classroom.

    The 500 hours of free, downloadable resources within The Computing Curriculum include all the materials you need in your classroom: from lesson plans and slide decks to activity sheets, homework, and assessments. To our knowledge, this is the most comprehensive set of free teaching and learning materials for computing and digital skills in the world.

    Two learners and a teacher in a physical computing lesson.
    We continuously update The Computing Curriculum to reflect the latest research about this young subject.

    Our Curriculum’s resources are based on clear progression and content frameworks we’ve designed, and we continuously update them based on the latest research and feedback from practising teachers. Doing this is particularly important for computing education resources, because computing is a young subject where thoughts and understanding about the best teaching approaches are still evolving.

    Computing lesson plans that save time and engage your learners

    With The Computing Curriculum, we support educators of all levels of experience. Whether you specialise in computing, or you are a newcomer to the subject, the Curriculum will save you time and help you deliver engaging lessons.

    In our 2022 survey of teachers who have used The Computing Curriculum resources:

    • 91% said the Curriculum was effective or very effective at saving teachers time
    • 89% said it was effective or very effective at developing teachers’ subject knowledge
    • 81% said it was effective or very effective at engaging students

    The resources are organised as themed units, and they support your computing lesson planning, preparation, and delivery because they are comprehensive as well as adaptable. You are free to use the resources as they are, or adjust them to your context, access to hardware, and learners’ needs and experience level.

    A Kenyan child smiles at a computer.
    The Computing Curriculum will help you plan and deliver engaging lessons.

    One aspect of The Computing Curriculum that will facilitate your teaching is the progression framework on which the resources are based. In creating the resources, we have considered the learning objectives throughout each unit and year group, and throughout the entire schooling period. This progression is detailed in curriculum maps and learning graphs, and you’ll be able to use these documents to plan your lessons and to check your learners’ understanding.

    Start teaching with The Computing Curriculum

    You can download and use the resources for the year groups you teach computing right now. And please tell us of your experiences using The Computing Curriculum in your classroom, so that we can make the resources even better for educators around the world.

    If you are interested in curriculum resources tailored for your region, please contact us via this form. You can find out how we adapted resources from The Computing Curriculum for learners living in a refugee camp in Kenya if you’d like to learn about our approach to tailoring resources.

    Website: LINK

  • Computing curriculum fundamentals | Hello World #20

    Computing curriculum fundamentals | Hello World #20

    Reading Time: 5 minutes

    Why are computing systems at the heart of our computing curriculum design? Senior Learning Manager Sway Grantham from the Foundation team explains in her article from the brand-new issue of Hello World, our free magazine for computing educators, out today.

    Cover of Hello World issue 20.

    Whether you plan lessons on a Computing topic, develop curriculum content, or even write curriculum policy, you have to make choices. What are you going to include and what is less of a priority? You have to consider time constraints and access to resources, prior learning and maybe even pupil interests. You probably also have to consider the wider curriculum context. Well, here is my first principle to help you: computing systems should be the foundation of your Computing curriculum.

    A computing systems epiphany

    As a primary teacher, when I first began writing Computing lesson plans for children aged 9 to 10, I started with programming. This was a very visual entry into Computing, and children were excited to create projects that were familiar to them, such as games and animations. However, as my understanding of Computing grew, I realised that something was missing.

    Two learners do physical computing in the primary school classroom.

    My learners could explain what an algorithm is, as well as explaining that a program is ‘a set of instructions that runs on a computer to tell it what to do’. Both of these met the curriculum needs, but I wasn’t convinced that they could link these two concepts together. Could they connect what they were doing on a floor robot to the computing systems around them? Did they understand what a computer was? Well… I asked them to see what they’d say!

    According to my class, a computer was:

    • A piece of technology
    • A keyboard and a screen
    • A search engine
    • A machine used for work
    • A metal brain
    • A machine with a keyboard
    • An information device
    • Electric

    This very simple question highlighted a wealth of alternate conceptions about programming and computing systems. The other commonality of my learners’ definitions was that they described the computer’s function, as if, in order to define what a computer is, we just need to know what it does. This view of a definition greatly limits learners’ ability to understand what potential computers have beyond personal use.

    My learners had two discrete chunks of knowledge: how to program a floor robot, and that laptops were computers. However, without a bridge to connect them, this learning was disjointed. Learners needed to have a concrete, conceptual understanding of ‘what a computer is’ before they could start to comprehend the more abstract role of a program in that system.

    Knowledge of computing systems empowers people to take control of technology and not just consume it.

    Beyond the experiences of my young learners, we see examples of a lack of understanding about computing systems all the time in society. Many competent users of software are able to regularly complete the tasks that they need, but if one day something doesn’t work, they do not know how to find a solution. Equally, many people enjoy exploring digital making projects, yet if they want to personalise the project, they don’t know what they can or can’t change to do this. Knowledge of computing systems empowers people to take control of technology and not just consume it.

    Planning computing content today

    Both of these examples highlight the importance of introducing computing systems as both life skills and as support for developing other areas of computing. More recently, the Raspberry Pi Foundation has been creating 100 hours of curriculum content in partnership with non-profit organisation Amala Education. Through this content we aim to give refugee learners who may never have used technology enough understanding to build a website that encourages social change.

    Whilst we know that the material needs to include some foundational knowledge of computing systems, we must first consider the core content that learners must understand to achieve the end goal, such as:

    • Webpage creation 
    • HTML/CSS/JavaScript
    • Project management 
    • Project development

    These areas of learning are a great place to start as, undeniably, learners aren’t going to be able to build a website without knowing the process of creating a website, the languages used to create web pages, or the project management skills to see a project from start to finish.

    This could be the entirety of the content, but instead, I encourage you to think back to those children who could program but didn’t know on what devices programs could run. We need to connect the core content to that foundational content: how is building a website related to computing systems?

    Prior knowledge

    All learning is built on prior knowledge, even if that prior knowledge has been gained through life experience and not formal education. To build a website, we need to know how to type and use a mouse. We need to know what a website is, why people use websites, and what sort of media is found on them. Beyond that, we need to know how the files that we are creating are being shared with other people. We need to understand that a computer can communicate with another computer and what the process is to make that happen. None of this learning is the core content of building a website, but if you tried to build a website without understanding these things, it would be difficult to do.

    All learning is built on prior knowledge, even if that prior knowledge has been gained through life experience and not formal education.

    As the learners we support together with Amala Education might have no prior experience of using technology, we needed to ensure that enough foundational computing systems content was built into the learning sequence — things such as:

    • Recognising digital devices
    • Decomposing computing systems
    • Digital painting (mouse skills)
    • Combining text and images (desktop publishing)
    • Networks and the internet
    • Internet searching

    By incorporating this content into the learning sequence, we ensure that learners do not just learn a process for creating a website. They understand the impact of the choices they make when building a website, they have the skills to implement their ideas, and they can connect their understanding to solve any unexpected challenges they find along the way. This more holistic approach should support learners’ knowledge transfer and offer them a much broader range of opportunities. 

    This more holistic approach should support learners’ knowledge transfer and offer them a much broader range of opportunities.

    Whatever your curriculum requires, you will have the core content you need to teach. This could be the requirements of your standardised curriculum, it could be the specific project you’re trying to build, or it could be the aspirations that you have for your students. However, rather than stopping at that part of your learning sequence, take a step back and consider the prior knowledge you’re connecting to. I expect you will find that computing systems is what you need to ensure learners’ new knowledge has a solid foundation.

    Read the new Hello World issue today

    Computing systems and networks is one of those computer science topics in which misconceptions abound. Hello World issue 20 focuses on how you can support your learners to grasp even the tricky ideas within this topic, giving you practical ideas, activities, and insights from practicing educators. Download your free PDF copy now, and subscribe to never miss an issue.

    Website: LINK