New teachers who come to education with computer science experience may want to focus on professional learning related to computer science pedagogy to start. Beyond that, they should use the Self-Reflection Worksheets and the indicators detailed within each standard to determine where they should focus their professional learning.
In order to use the CS Teachers Self-Reflection Worksheets, teachers should save a copy of the worksheets for Standard 1 and for Standards 2-5 in their Google Drive (by clicking the Create Copy buttons below and then clicking on Use Template) or download a PDF of each of the worksheets to be printed. This will allow for continual reference to and updating of the worksheets as the teacher grows as a professional.Â
It is likely that teachers will not complete all standards and/or all information for each standard at the same time. For example, if a teacher is attending professional development about equity, the teacher may concentrate on appropriate indicators on Standard 2 (Equity and Inclusion) and Standard 3 (Personal Growth and Identity), or if a school or district administrator has asked a teacher to concentrate on learning content, teachers may concentrate on the Standard 1 Worksheet (CS Knowledge and Skills).
Because Standard 1 refers to the CS content that a teacher needs to know in order to teach content to students, a separate tab (see the bottom of the spreadsheet) has been provided for each grade band in the CSTA K-12 CS Student Standards with the student standards as indicators. For Standard 1 tabs, teachers should:
Hide or delete the grade band tabs which do not apply to them. If using a PDF version of the standards, teachers should remove the pages that do not apply to them. For example, an elementary CS teacher, may want to hide, delete, or remove the grade band tabs for grades 6-8, 9-10, and 11-12 while a high school CS teacher, may want to hide, delete, or remove the grade band tabs for grades K-2, 3-5, and 6-8.
Teachers in states and districts that have their own K-12 CS Student Standards may want to replace the CSTA K-12 standards in their copy of the checklist with their CS student standards.