Page 25 - Getting the Picture Modeling and Simulation in Secondary Computer Science Education
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As a part of growing body of research resulting in recommendations 1 concerning teaching CT, there is also a budding interest to look specifically at
CS teachers (Mara Saeli et al., 2012; Yadav & Berges, 2019) by examining their
Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK) — subject matter knowledge for teaching
(Shulman, 1986). PCK represents teacher’s thoughts about teaching a particular topic and it can be described with various granularity, taking into account a range of circumstances influencing teaching (Carlson & Daehler, 2019; Grossman et al., 2005; Loughran et al., 2004; Magnusson et al., 1999).
The most cited model of PCK is that of Magnusson et al. (1999), defining five knowledge components of the construct of PCK. Four of these correspond to the following elements of content-specific pedagogy, which we will refer to as M1, M2, M3 and M4:
• M1: goals and objectives for teaching this particular content;
• M2: students’ understanding of this content, including requirements
for learning and their difficulties;
• M3: instructional strategies connected to this content;
• M4: methods of assessing students’ understanding of this content.
Most definitions and operationalizations of PCK share their recognition
of the above components. Magnusson et al. (1999) also proposed ‘orientations to teaching science’ as a fifth knowledge component. We do not include this component in our analyses, as it is considered less content-specific, and moreover, it is presented as an underlying type of knowledge influencing M1 to M4 (cf. Henze & Barendsen, 2019).
In this thesis, we will use M1 to M4 to indicate the pedagogical aspects of specific content, as well as to characterize components of teacher’s PCK for teaching that content.
1.1.4 Computer Science Education Research
The above scientific developments are illustrative of the emerging Computer Science Education Research (CSER) — a research field inspired and building upon rich traditions of related research fields (Guzdial & Boulay, 2019; Malmi et al., 2010). Following the call from the students, parents, educators, institutions, governments and other stakeholders to advance CS education (Furber, 2012; Gander et al., 2013; KNAW, 2012; Teaching computer science in France: Tomorrow can’t wait, 2013; Wilson, 2010), researchers see a role for themselves to support CS education by supplying solid theoretical underpinnings for its implementation.
Introduction
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