Our Vision: To prepare SCCS students to be global citizens, critical thinkers and communicators through the use of equity-oriented Computer Science

Check out the COE welcome event kickoff video that overviews the weeks events. 

Press Release

We are pleased to announce the funding of a new, 3-year grant from the National Science Foundation called “Computing for the Social Good: A Research-Practice Partnership to Increase Equity among Students and Parents.” The grant is a collaboration among Santa Cruz City Schools, the Santa Cruz Education Foundation, and Education, Training, Research (ETR), with additional researchers from Stanford University and the University of California. "Being right next door to Silicon Valley, we especially welcome this opportunity to bring computer science to our students as early as elementary school," says Dorothy Coito, assistant superintendent of Educational Services. The funds will be used to 1) Provide professional development and support for elementary and middle school teachers to integrate equity-oriented computer science into core curriculum with supports for English language development, 2) develop a K-8 pathway that attracts students and families by preparing them to be citizens who use computer science for the social good, 3) Build family engagement and competence through computer literacy and leadership activities, and 4) Establish a Computer Science Advisory Committee to work as part of our research-practice partnership to guide the vision of computer science.  For more information or to get involved, please contact Dorothy Coito at dcoito@sccs.net.

Portions of this work were supported in part by grants from the National Science Foundation 1738814 and 1923606.

TIMELINE 

Phase I: Exploration/Adoption/Orientation (2019)

Fall: PD for teachers/staff and TOSA; school visits; review of research; form CS Integration 

Team, CS Advisory Committee, and Family Engagement Team (will meet monthly from now on)

Phase II: Installation (2020)

Winter:  Gault: design for CS integration into core academic units based on the augmentation 

phase of SAMR. Branciforte (B40): continue integration into Science and Core, CS elective. Design family engagement. Establish data collection measures and methods; IRB review. 

Phase III: Initial Implementation (2020)

Spring:     Pilot test units in classes and family engagement; collect data.

Summer: Teacher PD; analyze/ interpret data; revise units and family engagement.

Phase IV: Full Implementation (2020-2021)

Fall: Gault: implement CS units in one class per grade level. B40: CS elective; integration

         into Science and Core. Family engagement activities at all schools; data collection. 

Winter: Data analysis and interpretation; revision of units and family engagement.

Spring: Gault: implement CS units in all classes. Other elementary schools: integrate CS units in one 

Class per grade level. Family engagement at all schools. Data collection.

Phase V: Innovation and Sustainability (2021-2022)

Summer: Data analysis and interpretation; revision of classes; teacher PD.

Fall: Expand CS implementation at all schools. Family engagement. Data collection.

Spring: Data analysis; dissemination of findings; sustainability working group.

Summer: Finalize models of CS integration, family engagement, data collection and utilization.