Collaborative Research: Teaching All Cs Through Inclusion and Collaboration with Special education (TACTICS)

A strong foundation in computer science (CS) will define success in the workforce of tomorrow. A key step towards increasing meaningful participation and learning in CS education for all learners is equipping their teachers with effective instructional strategies. This project will develop and study approaches to prepare 4th and 5th grade general and special education teachers to teach CS to a broad range of learners, including those with disabilities, through professional development. This project will investigate the impact of this professional development on teachers' instructional practices, as well as the learning, ability beliefs, and CS attitudes of elementary students with and without disabilities. This project includes cycles of learning and teaching with two partner school districts in Arizona. During these cycles, teacher teams will first learn about effective CS instructional practices and then implement these practices within classrooms. Teachers will engage in collaborative planning, lesson feedback cycles, and technical support during teaching. The study is guided by both development and impact research questions. Development questions include: How do 4th/5th grade and special and general education teachers adapt this professional development to their instructional practices to increase the participation of all learners, including students with disabilities in CS education? Impact questions include: How does participation impact teachers' competence in teaching CS to all elementary students, including those with disabilities? This project will contribute to the empirical literature on effective online, sustained professional learning to elementary and special education teachers and expand opportunities for all students in CS education. The Discovery Research preK-12 program (DRK-12) seeks to significantly enhance the learning and teaching of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) by preK-12 students and teachers, through research and development of innovative resources, models and tools. Projects in the DRK-12 program build on fundamental research in STEM education and prior research and development efforts that provide theoretical and empirical justification for proposed projects. 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.