Making room for computer science at Bergman Academy
Leaders and teachers at Bergman Academy in Des Moines are prioritizing the integration of computer science this school year. Over the summer, the school hosted an in-person training for seven educators facilitated by the Iowa Department of Education and Green Hills Area Education Agency (AEA).
This learning opportunity was a part of a series of free, virtual professional development offered by the Department and Green Hills AEA that empower elementary educators to integrate computer science lessons and concepts into everyday instruction.
“Connecting computer science to other content areas allows teachers to bring this increasingly necessary subject area into the classroom while still covering the existing content and curriculum expected at each grade level,” said Michelle Meier, computer science education program consultant at the Department. “The interdisciplinary nature of the instruction helps classroom teachers, librarians, coaches and computer science teachers strengthen student learning and connections across both subjects.”
For Bergman Academy, the training provided opportunities for its team to not only learn innovative practices in computer science but also to collaborate with each other and build new skills together.
“Experiencing this as a team allowed them to share ideas, to see each other as co-learners and teammates and to build a shared knowledge, confidence and momentum across ages and disciplines,” said Christie Stover, Head of School at Bergman Academy. “It truly strengthened the entire team. They experienced being learners together. They shared laughter and frustration and celebrated each other’s successes.”
During the professional development training, educators participated in screen-free, hands-on activities they could implement in their classrooms to tie computational thinking and other computer science concepts into existing lessons.
“As an educator, I have found computer science concepts in creative writing, reading comprehension, all STEAM areas and beyond,” said Tessi Glaser, first grade teacher at Bergman Academy. “When we teach computer science, we are teaching our students to be thinkers, and that should be the primary goal of school.”
Green Hills AEA facilitators demonstrated how a common practice in elementary classrooms–reading picture books–can demonstrate and reinforce computer science and artificial intelligence concepts like pattern recognition, data gathering and data analysis. One example book incorporates coding concepts, like loops, algorithms and coding structures, as it follows a girl building a sand castle at the beach, a process already familiar to many students.
“When students see the link between their learning, it empowers them to take more responsibility for their own learning,” said Jill Hart, educational technology specialist at Bergman Academy. “By intentionally incorporating computer science into the day, students gain the confidence to be successful citizens no matter the path they take in the future.”
Initial sessions were held over the summer, prior to teachers heading back to the classroom. Additional sessions were held virtually allowing 38 Iowa elementary educators representing 19 school districts to learn how to integrate computer science concepts and vocabulary into existing lessons.
The professional development opportunity is designed to give educators time to implement a few of the new lessons into their classrooms with additional coaching sessions to follow. In November, Bergman Academy educators and other participants will reconvene to build on the concepts introduced this summer and provide an opportunity to celebrate successes, overcome challenges and learn from fellow attendees and organizers.
“Our responsibility as educators is not simply to prepare students for the world as it exists today, but to develop and instill the mindsets and approaches to learning and work that they need to be successful in a world that we can’t fully anticipate,” Stover said. “Early systemic and systematic exposure to computer science helps students learn to break down complex problems, see patterns, think logically and creatively, test ideas, experience and learn from failure, adapt, collaborate and ultimately persist.”
For more computer science opportunities, visit the Department’s computer science webpage or contact Michelle Meier at [email protected].
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