Rethinking Circle Time: Development of K-2 CT Literacy Integrated CurriculumK12In-Person
With the rapid development of technology, it is critical to provide equal opportunities for all K-12 students to prepare computationally literate citizens that will contribute to our emerging digital society. Without an explicit focus on broadening participation efforts, CS education is likely to continue to exclude women. Low female participation in CS is directly related to K-12 pipeline problems. By starting at the lowest levels of K-12 education, we can build interest and confidence in CS, as studies have shown that girls start to lose interest in CS-related fields in the upper-elementary grades. This paper will describe the development and piloting of a K-2 CT literacy integrated curriculum (Rethinking Circle Time: ReCT). We examined how K-2 students engaged in multiple representations of CT (e.g., unplugged activities, embodied activities, computational toys, programming activities) to identify the CT developmental learning progressions in these early grades. In addition, we sought to examine how gender might impact students’ engagement in literacy-based CT and non-literacy-based CT activities. Data were collected from task interviews and observations of K-2 students, as well as through co-design meetings with K-2 teachers. Data were organized based on two tasks focused on sequencing and conditionals (one CT specific and one literacy CT-integrated activity). Results indicated that K-2 students tended to engage more with literacy activities, but depending on gender and age, students varied on which representations were preferred. Teachers suggested that ReCT activities should be introduced through stations whereby students would have choice in which representation best aligned with their preferences.