Teachers Are Key: Partnering With and Supporting Quality Computer Science Teachers Within the Second Largest School Districts in the Country

该奖项是根据2009年美国复苏和再投资法案（公法111-5）资助的。来自加州大学洛杉矶分校（UCLA）的pi提出了一个项目：教师是解决中学计算机科学（CS）教育危机的一个核心方面的关键：对高质量的高中计算机科学教师的需求。教师是关键建立在加州大学洛杉矶分校的研究人员和洛杉矶联合学区（LAUSD）之间的长期合作基础上。这次合作的结果是开发了一个全面的计算机科学入门课程和一个夏季专业发展计划，指导教师学习课程概念和内容。为了这个项目，pi将在地方和国家层面为计算机科学教师建立有效的支持和专业发展系统。这些教师中有许多是计算机科学的新手，他们是学校里唯一的教师，这使得专业发展和支持网络成为必要。这一全面的支援网络将提供以下服务：1)教师持续的课堂专业发展，由全区的CS辅导/点对点辅导系统提供支持；2)贯穿整个学年的专业发展研讨会；3)在线学习社区。设计的方案和相应的经验教训将在全国范围内传播，作为对其他学区和大学的指导和帮助。教师是关键的举措将建立在pi（围绕这些问题建立伙伴关系的大学教师/研究人员和K-12领导者）及其合作伙伴的专业知识之上：1)加州大学洛杉矶分校X中心，一个领先的城市教师专业发展中心，具有悠久的改革努力历史，并与LAUSD的教师合作；2)计算机科学教师协会，全国计算机科学教师专业组织。这项资助的项目负责人是大学研究人员和K-12地区领导人，他们具有独特的优势，可以利用和扩大成功的项目，并为制度变革创造一个模式。智力价值：改善STEM教育，保证所有学生平等获得优质教育是我们国家的一个目标吗？最紧迫的挑战。教师是关键正是这一全国性挑战的关键所在。该项目将提供关于两个重要主题的基本知识：1)在学校，特别是在少数民族学生较多的学校，增加严格学习计算机科学的机会；2)为计算机科学教师提供有效的专业发展方法。这些知识有可能为其他STEM学科的类似挑战提供启示。更广泛的影响：教师是关键将提供一个在学校、地区、州和国家层面上为所有学生提高质量的计算机科学教育所必须做的模型。专业发展模式将在全国第二大、最多样化的学区之一设计和实施，这将有助于地方和国家正在进行的扩大计算机参与的努力。该项目将提供三个重要的见解：1)招聘和培训大量新的高中教师，他们可以向学生传授计算机科学的魔力和“计算思维”；2)将计算机科学在高中水平重新定位为一门学术学科；3)重新设计高中课程，使其严格并吸引更多的学生。为了发展21世纪的经济，我们必须培养学生21世纪的技能，包括让所有学生都能接受严格的计算训练。

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).The PIs from University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) propose a project: Teachers are Key to address a central aspect of the crisis in secondary school computer science (CS) education: the need for quality high school CS teachers. Teachers are Key builds upon a long-time collaboration between UCLA researchers and the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). This collaboration has resulted in the development of a comprehensive introductory computer science curriculum and a summer professional development program to instruct teachers on the curriculum concepts and content. For this project the PIs will build effective supports and a professional development system at a local and national level for computer science teachers. Many of these teachers are new to computer science and are the lone teacher at their schools making professional development and support networks a necessity. This comprehensive support network will offer 1) continuous in-classroom teacher professional development supported by a district-wide CS coaching / peer-to-peer mentoring system, 2) on-going professional development workshops throughout the school year and 3) an on-line learning community. The programs designed and corresponding lessons learned will be disseminated nationwide as a guide and assistance for other school districts and universities.Teachers are Key's initiatives will build upon the expertise of the PIs (university faculty/researchers and K-12 leaders with an established partnership around these issues) and their partners: 1) UCLA Center X, a leading urban teacher professional development center with a long history of reform efforts and working with teachers within LAUSD and the 2) Computer Science Teachers Association, the national professional organization of computer science teachers. The PIs of this grant are university researchers and K-12 District leaders who are uniquely positioned to leverage and scale up successful programs and to create a model for institutional change.Intellectual Merit:Improving STEM education and guaranteeing equal access to quality education for all students is one of our country?s most pressing challenges. Teachers are Key sits at the crux of this national challenge. This project will provide essential knowledge about two important subjects: 1) increasing rigorous learning of computer science opportunities in schools, especially in schools with high numbers of minority students, and 2) effective methods of professional development for computer science teachers. This knowledge has the potential to shed light on similar challenges in other STEM disciplines.Broader Impacts:Teachers are Key will provide a model of what has to be done at the school, district, state, and national levels to improve quality computer science education for all students. The models of professional development that will be designed and implemented in the second largest and one of the most diverse school districts in the country will contribute to local and national efforts underway to broaden participation in computing. This project will provide insight on three important things 1) Recruiting and training a very large number of new high school teachers who can impart to students the magic and "computational thinking" of computer science, 2) re-positioning CS at the high school level as an academic subject, and 3) redesigning the high school curriculum so that it is rigorous and engaging for a broad segment of our student population. In order to develop a 21st Century economy, we must train students in 21st century skills including making rigorous computational training available to all students.