Presentation
Using the Engineering Design Process to Teach Computational Thinking
Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education
(2020)
Abstract
Increasingly, educators are being asked to include computational thinking (CT) in their instruction. However, many teachers are unsure of what CT is or how it should be taught. The engineering design process could provide that needed framework, as it incorporates the most common pedagogy for teaching CT (problem-based learning, project-based learning, and collaborative learning), applies to complex problems in several domains, and embeds CT skills. This presentation will share the collaborative efforts of two organizations to help teachers use CT in the classroom. Together, they created unit plans for middle school math, English language arts, and science that integrate CT with specific content standards for grades six, seven, and eight. The structure of each of these units is a project-based learning approach that uses the engineering design process to provide structure for students and teachers to learn and apply CT in various contexts. These units, and how they were designed, will be shared in this presentation.
Keywords
- computational thinking,
- engineering design process
Disciplines
Publication Date
2020
Citation Information
Jacques, L. (2020). Using the Engineering Design Process to Teach Computational Thinking. In D. Schmidt-Crawford (Ed.), Proceedings of Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference (pp. 41-45). Online: Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE).