Integrate to Innovate: A Research-Practice Partnership to Integrate Computer Science into Maine Schools

该项目将在缅因州共同设计一个由学术和非营利性教育研究人员、三个农村学区和商业伙伴组成的研究从业者伙伴关系（RPP）。RPP将重点发展专业发展类型的愿景，使计算机科学教育能够有效地整合到农村的K-8教室中。通过建立农村社区的需求和独特的特点，RPP将为一项改革倡议奠定基础，使K-8学生接触到计算机科学的相关经验和现实应用。研究人员希望让学生们了解计算机是如何在他们的社区中使用的，并为他们提供机会，让他们认识到美国农村地区潜在的就业机会。主要的研究问题是如何支持计算机科学融入农村K-8数学和科学教学。为了回答这个问题，RPP将做以下工作：1)确定何时何地计算机科学可以与现有的数学和科学标准相结合；2)确定可扩展计算机科学学习的专业发展结构；3)为农村各州建立rpp模式，为计算机科学教学创造专业发展；4)利用前人的工作建立一个框架，为农村学生提供公平的计算机科学学习机会。一个迭代的，基于设计的研究方法将被用来研究这些问题和发展和成长的RPP。特别是，访谈和调查将用于了解利益相关者的思想和行动的进展，因为RPP的发展。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This project will co-design a researcher practitioner partnership (RPP) in the state of Maine consisting of academic and non-profit educational researchers, three rural school districts, and business partners. The RPP will focus on developing a vision for the types of professional development that will enable the effective integration of computer science education in rural, K-8 classrooms. By building on the needs and unique characteristics of rural communities, the RPP will form the foundation for a reform initiative that exposes K-8 students to relevant experiential and real-world applications of computer science. The researchers hope to empower students to see how computing is used in their communities and provide opportunities for them to recognize potential career opportunities available to them in rural America.The primary research question asks how to support the integration of computer science into rural K-8 math and science instruction. To answer this, the RPP will work to do the following: 1) identify when and where computer science can be integrated with existing math and science standards; 2) identify professional development structures for scalable computer science learning; 3) develop models for rural states to establish RPPs that create professional development for computer science teaching, and; 4) leverage prior work to build a framework that provides equitable learning opportunities in computer science for rural students. An iterative, design-based research methodology will be used to study these questions and the development and growth of the RPP. In particular, interviews and surveys will be used to understand the progression of stakeholder's thinking and actions as the RPP develops.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.