EDEM626-15W (D) Whole Year 2015 (Distance)

Special Topic: Curriculum Implementation in Computer Science

30 points

Details:
Start Date: Monday, 23 February 2015
End Date: Sunday, 15 November 2015
Withdrawal Dates
Last Day to withdraw from this course:
  • Without financial penalty (full fee refund): Friday, 6 March 2015
  • Without academic penalty (including no fee refund): Friday, 4 September 2015

Description

This Special Topic aims to equip participants to teach the computer science topics in the Digital Technologies achievement standards that were introduced from 2011 to 2013. Each of the main topics will be critically examined in terms of pedagogical and subject knowledge while at the same time developing participants' understanding of theoretical perspectives of computer science education. Participants will develop research skills and investigate theories and practices in computer science education. A key component is an individual action research project to develop, implement and critically evaluate a resource that would support teaching a topic from one of the standards. This project will provide practical experience informed by current research from the computer science discipline. This course does not cover computer programming.

Learning Outcomes

1. Demonstrate an understanding of the main new topics covered by computer science achievement standards, including standards for school students in New Zealand (AS91074, AS91371, AS91636) and explain their relationship to the discipline of computer science.
2. Demonstrate an understanding of pedagogical knowledge for teaching computer science at high school level.
3. Critique and apply socio-cultural learning theory to computer science education in high schools.
4. Critically evaluate existing resources for teaching computer science at high school level.
5. Analyse and critique key literature (from the main English-language bodies of material) related to the teaching 
of computer science at high school level.
6. Design, implement and evaluate new resources to convey topics from computer science to students.
7. Examine and demonstrate an understanding of the implications of social and cultural issues including gender, 
diversity, disability and equity in computer science education.
8. Evaluate the roles of major organisations concerned with the curriculum development and teaching of 
computer science, including CSTA, NZACDITT, CAS, and ACM.

Prerequisites

Subject to approval of the Head of School. RP: Note: this course does not require a background in computer science, but will assume that students are comfortable as computer users. It is recommended that students have some experience with programming, to contextualise the topics, although the course will not require students to write programs. Knowledge of mathematics to senior high school level is useful for several topics.

Recommended Preparation

Note: this course does not require a background in computer science, but will assume that students are comfortable as computer users. It is recommended that students have some experience with programming, to contextualise the topics, although the course will not require students to write programs. Knowledge of mathematics to senior high school level is useful for several topics.

Course Coordinator / Lecturer

Tim Bell

Assessment

Assessment Due Date Percentage  Description
Report 09 Jun 2015 25% Report reviewing CS education resource
Mini Research Project and Presentation 15 Oct 2015 60% Designing CS lesson(s) and report on teaching it
Participation 15 Oct 2015 15% Contributions in class discussions and blog

Additional Course Outline Information

Assessment and grading system

Grading Scale
Grade    GPA Value        Marks

A+              9            90 – 100
A                8            85 – 89.99
A-               7            80 – 84.99
B+              6            75 – 79.99
B                5            70 – 74.99
B-               4            65 – 69.99
C+              3            60 – 64.99
C                2            55 – 59.99
C-               1            50 – 54.99
D                0            40 – 49.99
E               -1             0 – 39.99

A Pass is 50 marks or over

Attendance

Distance students must participate in the course via Learn to meet the learning outcomes.  Students are responsible for obtaining relevant lecture/course information via Learn. This will mean regular engagement with forums and course materials on the Learn site. Participation will enhance your understanding of issues and allow for discussion and clarification of complex issues. Online activity will ensure all students can discuss, debate and reflect. Insufficient participation in the course will jeopardise students passing the course.

Notes

This course will be taught both on campus and as a distance course. There will be an on-site block component before the start of the course (9am to 4pm, Saturday 28 February 2015), and about 12 two-hour weekly meetings (Tuesdays 4pm to 6pm) that can be attended online. The on-site component will be in Christchurch, but if there are sufficient numbers, it will also be run in Auckland.

Students are encouraged and supported to apply their learning to their professional context(s). Course participants are encouraged to negotiate access to a group of learners to practice their own computer science teaching for two to three weeks around the middle of the course, including approval from relevant managers.

Where to submit and collect work

FLO (D) (R) (Y) Assignments submitted via Learn
Students will be expected to submit their assessments via the online assessment system in the Learn class site by 5.00pm on or before the due date. The lecturer may also ask students to submit assessment work through the software Turnitin, to check for plagiarism. If this option is available students will submit work through Turnitin and obtain a report, after submitting assignments for marking via the Learn site.

It is the responsibility of the students to check their Internet access and ability to submit their work via the online system.  Any technical difficulties should be notified well in advance of the due date so that assistance can be provided or alternative arrangements can be negotiated. (Students who have unreliable internet access are advised to attend to this early in the course to prevent last minute pressures.) If you require assistance, please email ictservicedesk@canterbury.ac.nz, or phone 0800 763 676 ext 6060.

Indicative Fees

Domestic fee $1,690.00

* All fees are inclusive of NZ GST or any equivalent overseas tax, and do not include any programme level discount or additional course-related expenses.

For further information see School of Educational Studies and Leadership .

All EDEM626 Occurrences

  • EDEM626-15W (D) Whole Year 2015 (Distance)