Investigating the Effects of Computational Thinking Games on Mathematical and Scientific Practices

STEM + Computing Partnership（STEM+C）计划旨在通过跨一个或多个领域的应用研究和开发，推动STEM教学和学习中的多学科计算整合。该项目旨在通过大规模部署用于发展计算思维的在线课程，调查计算思维与共同核心国家标准（CCSS）和下一代科学标准（NGSS）中概述的数学和科学实践之间的联系。计算技能将通过三个独立的年龄和年级适当的基于游戏的计算思维课程提供给小学，初中和高中学生，该课程使用自适应教育平台，专注于开发可能转移到数学和科学学习的高阶技能。两个研究问题将指导研究和开发活动：（1）以游戏为基础的计算思维课程能否提高学生的数学和科学实践以及他们的计算技能？以及（2）在不同的年级水平上，课程材料和教师制定的最佳特征是什么？为了回答这些问题，该项目将：（1）开发基于计算思维问题的学习经验，重点是嵌入在小学，初中和高中学生的三个年龄适当的教学游戏中的计算思维;（2）提供支架式教师支持，以提供不需要教师任何计算背景的学习经验;（3）制定有效措施，评估获得共同做法的情况;（4）在三个州的3 000多名教师和90 000多名学生中实施课程并评估其效果;（5）将计算挑战与数学应用题解决联系起来，分析了计算挑战与数学应用题解决的实践迁移;以及（6）用数据验证多年的干预和验证-该研究将采用计算思维的概念作为一个解决问题的过程，可转移到各种各样的情况下，包括数学和科学的实际应用。因此，这项工作的前提是，计算思维的核心实践与CCSS和NGSS中确定的数学和科学实践密切相关。为了展示如何在不同年级发展适当的技能，该项目将开发三个独立的基于游戏的干预措施，适用于小学，初中和高中学生，包括基于问题的计算思维学习经验，将嵌入到这些游戏中。为了促进基于游戏的学习技术和课程的成功实施，该项目将把计算游戏与教师协同试点结合起来，这是一个学习平台，将为教师提供课程计划和课堂活动的分步过程，直接部署在学生计算机上。教师辅助试点的设计假设教师将通过上课学习得最好，因此将针对最短的启动时间量身定制体验。为了解决这两个研究问题，该项目将调查基于游戏的计算思维课程是否可以改善学生的数学和科学实践的某些方面，以及他们的计算技能。这将通过对三个游戏进行大规模的改进和部署，并通过对一小部分学生进行认知访谈和对所有参与学生进行精心制定的评估来评估迁移。同样，该项目将调查课程材料和教师制定的最佳特征，这些特征将通过与教师共同试点平台的整合在不同年级产生最大的成果，通过该平台，该项目将调查教师所需的最有效的最小支架。这将通过两次迭代的试点研究来完成，样本为40名教师和焦点小组访谈，以调查对教师有用和最佳的反馈。该项目的主要成果将是基于游戏的课程的研究和实地测试的原型，重点是跨年级的计算思维和科学与数学学习的整合，免费提供给教育工作者，以便在项目结束后进行调整。一个咨询委员会将对该项目进行形成性和总结性评价。

The STEM + Computing Partnership (STEM+C) program seeks to advance multidisciplinary integration of computing in STEM teaching and learning through applied research and development across one or more domains. This project aims at investigating the connections between computational thinking and mathematical and scientific practices as outlined in the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) through large-scale deployment of an online curriculum for development of computational thinking. The computational skills will be delivered to elementary, middle, and high-school students through three separate age- and grade-appropriate game-based computational thinking curriculum using an adaptive educational platform focused on developing higher-order skills that are likely transferable to mathematics and science learning. Two research questions will guide the research and development activities: (1) Can the game-based computational thinking curriculum lead to improvement in students' mathematics and science practices, as well as their computing skills?; and (2) What are the optimal characteristics of curriculum materials and teacher enactment that would lead to greatest outcomes at different grade levels? To answer these questions, the project will: (1) develop computational thinking problem-based learning experiences with a focus on computational thinking embedded in three age-appropriate instructional games for elementary, middle, and high school students; (2) provide scaffolded teacher support for delivering the learning experience that does not require any computational background for teachers; (3) develop valid measures towards assessing acquisition of shared practices; (4) implement the curricula and evaluate their effects through large-scale statewide in three states with over 3,000 teachers and over 90,000 students; (5) connect the computational challenges with mathematics word problem solving and analyze the practice transfer; and (6) iterate the interventions and validation over multiple years with data-driven optimization towards greater transfer outcomes.The study will adopt the notion of computational thinking as a problem-solving process that is transferable to a wide variety of situations, including practical applications in mathematics and science. Thus, the premise of this effort will be that practices at the core of computational thinking are closely related to the mathematics and science practices identified in the CCSS and NGSS. In order to demonstrate how appropriate skills are developed across grade levels, the project will develop three separate game-based interventions appropriate for elementary, middle, and high school students, including problem-based computational thinking learning experiences that will be embedded in each of these games. To facilitate the successful implementation of the game-based learning technologies and curricula, the project will integrate computational games with the Teacher Co-Pilot, a learning platform that will provide teachers with lesson plans and step-by-step processes for classroom activities, which are directly deployed on student computers. The design of the Teacher Co-Pilot assumes that teachers will learn best by doing the lesson, so the experience will be tailored towards minimum startup time. To address the two research questions, the project will investigate whether a game-based computational thinking curriculum can lead to improvement in selected aspects of students' mathematics and science practices, as well as their computing skills. This will be achieved through the refinement and deployment of the three games at scale and assessing transfer with cognitive interviews of a small sample of students and carefully developed assessments with all the participating students. Likewise, the project will investigate the optimal characteristics of curriculum materials and teacher enactment that would lead to greatest outcomes at different grade levels via integration with the Teacher Co-Pilot platform, through which the project will investigate the most effective minimal scaffolding needed for teachers. This will be accomplished through pilot studies in two iterations with a sample of 40 teachers and focus group interviews to investigate useful and optimal feedback for teachers. The key outcome of this project will be research-informed and field-tested prototypes of game-based curriculum focused on the integration of computational thinking and science and mathematics learning across grade levels, freely available to educators for implementation of adaptation beyond the duration of the project. An advisory board will conduct the formative and summative evaluation of the project.