IB CP General Info from the IB website

• What is the CP?

Your reflective project should be on a topic that is of interest to you and should focus on a current issue, not a past issue.

Options:

1. 3000 word essay + reflection

2. 1500-2000 word essay + reflection, and an additional product (presentation, film, play, display)

Ideas

• Data Privacy

• Big Data

• Cybersecurity (personal, Business, Control Systems/Vital Infrastructure like powerplants and water facilities)

• Algorithmic Racial Bias

• AI (Artificial Intelligence) & AGI (Artificial General Intelligence)

• Digital Assistants

• Robotics

• Smart Phones, Smart Devices, & Smart Homes

• Automated Services

• VR (Virtual Reality) & AR (Augmented Reality)

• Gaming

• Social Media & Disinformation

Additional ideas can be found through the "Issues in Technology" class contents.

Whatever your topic, make sure you're identifying an issue with that technology and providing data while expressing your opinion on it. If you just provide data, you're not reflecting. If you just provide oppinions, you're not backing it up with facts.

Please connect with Mr. Birkel before undertaking any of these opportunities as a few of them require special permission, planning, and communication prior to implementing.

The following are just ideas. If you come up with other Computer Programming related ideas, please share them with me so I can add them to this list. You're also not required to do Computer Programming specific volunteer hours - it's just highly encouraged (and way more beneficial and meaningful). Volunteer hours can be tracked beginning of your 1st day of Summer Break after your Sophomore Year.

Free Geeks - This is a business in Portland that provides volunteer opportunities to take apart, fix, and put together computers ,as well as fundraise or run a tech drive. With a certain number of service hours, students are also able to earn a free, refurbished computer. They also provide learning opportunities - and tours. Check out their Volunteer Page for more details about volunteer opportunities.

VEX Robotics - We host an event in November every year for our robotics tournaments, and North Salem & West Salem host a few events as well. Connect with Mr. Birkel about opportunities to help setup, takedown, run concessions, ref, and queue at these events. Students on VEX teams who would like to earn volunteer hours are limited on what they're allowed to do and how many hours would be counted at these events.

Run or Volunteer at a Computer Science or Robotics Camp/Club - We're always looking for ways to get computer science to grow through outreach. Helping with a robotics camp or club to help encourage middle school students to join computer science when they get to high school is a great way to help build our program. Time spent helping with the Middle School Showcases and the Future Freshman Night count as well.

Help Fundraise - Our Robotics and TSA (Technical Student Association) programs cost money to run, Spending time sharing Sponsorship letters with businesses or in some other way helping raise funds would help build the program as a whole.

Service Learning should

• Show initiative

• Demonstrate perseverance

• Develop skills such as cooperation, collaboration, communication, decision-making and problem-solving

• Take responsibility

• Become involved with community members, and to become active members in local, national, and international communities.

You need to take 2 IB-specific courses to receive a CP diploma. 1 of those must be a 2-year course. The following is a list of IB course options to consider that are relevant to computer programming.

• IB Math Applications (2 yr)

• IB Math Analysis (2 yr)

• IB Physics (2 yr)

• Any IB Language

• IB Business Management

• IB Economics

• IB Psychology

Students will create a Google Site to document CP Experiences, document hours and activities, and demonstrate completion of the CP Core requirements. 

Typically project-based assignments that combine concepts used throughout the semester. Common examples include building a multipage website for a career of interest (Web 1), Building a ordering app for a restaurant (Web 2), building a game (Intro to Programming).

Higher level coding classes usually are assessed through the completion of 3 programming challenges that test the primary topics from the semester.

Occasionally a multiple choice test will accompany a project to test concept understanding.

In Web1 and Web2 we have opportunities for students to create websites and apps geared towards their personality, culture, and heritage.

• • Build a webpage that introduces you to the class

  • Build a website on your favorite food

  • Build an app for a make believe food truck

In Intro to Programming we build games. Students are encouraged to be creative with the sprites (images in the game) that they make.

In more advanced programming classes we talk about how algorithmic bias influences the results of our programs and can intentionally or unintentionally harm groups of people. Examples include facial recognition software not working properly for darker skinned faces, or algorithms that were developed with the intent to help businesses narrow down large pools of candidates (potential hires or loan applicants) but end up removing large numbers of people based on gender, skin tone, age, etc.

We don't have a lot of partnerships. I prepare my students well to enter into any college computer science program through the material that I teach. Prior to the pandemic I was connecting regularly with our local community college as part of their industry advisory group, but they've changed their meeting hours to make that not possible anymore.

I am working with Willamette Promise (OSU + OIT) to offer college credit in my Web Design class and possibly for independent study Cybersecurity.

I am also working with Chemeketa to try and offer college credit to students who complete Robotics Programming and participate in the after-school Robotics teams/competitions.

Almost none. Because computer programming is a tech-focused program and we do not live in an area with many tech companies, making connections and building relationships is hard.

We do have a meeting 2x a year with other computer science programs and we strive to get someone from industry to attend, but it's usually someone in the engineering field.

I'm an active participant in the Oregon Computer Science Teachers Association, attending Fall, Spring, and Summer professional development opportunities. When time permits and opportunities arise, I also strive to help lead PD events related to computer science and have taught other teachers topics related to Web Design and Gamemaker.

I'm very active at the local level, collaborating regularly with teachers from Sprague, West Salem, & North Salem's Computer Science, Engineering, and Scybersecurity teachers.

I'm also an active participant on computer science discussion boards through the Computer Science Teachers Association and CSAwesome. Though not PD, I consider these discussion groups to be valuable assets to my personal professional development as I regularly make connections with other passionate computer science teachers.