Coding across the curriculum
Miles Berry
@mberry | #elimconf2018
12 June 2018
These slides: bit.ly/elimconf2018
Computing
A high-quality computing education equips pupils to use computational thinking and creativity to understand and change the world.
Computing has deep links with mathematics, science and design and technology, and provides insights into both natural and artificial systems.
A high-quality computing education equips pupils to use computational thinking and creativity
With thanks to Julia Briggs
EYFS
What about coding?
Computational thinking
Computational thinking is the thought processes involved in formulating a problem and expressing its solution(s) in such a way that a computer—human or machine—can effectively carry out.
Informally, computational thinking describes the mental activity in formulating a problem to admit a computational solution.
Coding helps develop (computational) thinking
I began to see how children who had learned to program computers could use very concrete computer models to think about thinking and to learn about learning and in doing so, enhance their powers as psychologists and as epistemologists.
Some students are actually getting quite good at coding.
The big idea
Look for ways that your students can apply their coding skills and CS knowledge to solve problems and develop understanding in the other subjects they study.
Subject by subject
Other examples are available...
English
Science
Art and design
Design and technology
Foreign languages
Geography
History
Music
PE
PSHE
RE
print("Hello!")
name = input("What is your name? ")
print("It's a pleasure to meet you, " + name + ".")
print("What odd weather it's been of late.")
today = input("What have you been doing today? ")
print("What a coincidence! I've been " + today.lower() + " too.")
conscious = input(name + ", are you self-aware? ")
if conscious.lower() == "yes":
print("So am I. It's great, isn't it?")
elif conscious.lower() == "no":
print("Well, I am!")
else:
reason = input("Interesting. Why do you say that " + name + "? ")
print("I think I'll need to think about that.")
The big questions
Are your pupils (and colleagues) ready to apply their coding skills across the curriculum?
What areas of the curriculum would you focus on if you wanted to develop students’ understanding through a bit of coding?
Questions?
@mberry
m.berry@roehampton.ac.uk
milesberry.net
These slides: bit.ly/elimconf2018