2012 CS4HS Workshop

2012 Computer Science for High School Teacher Training Workshop
CS4HS (Computer Science for High School) is an initiative sponsored by Google to promote Computer Science and Computational Thinking in high school and middle school curriculum. With a grant from Google's Education Group, universities develop 2-3 day workshops for local high school and middle school CS teachers. These workshops incorporate informational talks by industry leaders, and discussions on new and emerging CS curricula at the high school and middle school level.

Workshop Goals
To enable you to bring computing concepts and activities into your high school classes. We'll approach this both by providing hands on experience with the widely-used AgentSheets and the new AgentCubes (3D) visual programming systems. You will learn how to teach your students Computational Thinking by engaging them with 2D and 3D game design activities. We will share curriculum resources developed as part of several projects funded by the National Science Foundation. Neither you nor your students will require a background in programming, art or 3D modeling to benefit from the workshop. The workshop content is most relevant to computer education and STEM teachers but all teachers interested in enriching your curriculum with computational topics relevant to 21st century learning are encouraged to apply. The main goal of this workshop is to provide you with information about opportunities involving the use of computing ideas and skills in a wide range of disciplines and occupations that you can share with your high school students. Specific goals include:


 * Get a sense of what computational thinking is and how to integrate it into your courses
 * Be introduced to game design
 * Learn about pedagogical models exploring engagement and motivation of game design activities in schools
 * Visit the Boulder Google Labs and learn about new tools relevant to education

Financial Terms
Participants will receive a stipend of $300 which will be provided upon completion of the workshop and submission of at least two reports, due by December 15th, 2012 (submit to Yasko Endo, yasko.endo@colorado.edu):


 * One (or more) brief reports describing how the participant PLANS TO USE the ideas from the workshop in their subsequent teaching.
 * One (or more) written reports or creative feedback showing meaningful use of the workshop contents within the classroom - collecting stories from students, videos or photos of class in action (be sure to have student Media Permission forms completed), blog postings on Scalable Game Design Edmodo wall, testimonials sent to Yasko. Go innovative and wild - have you/your students write a song, poetry, create a collage.

Participants also receive:

Copies of the AgentSheets and AgentCubes software for personal and school use for the school year.

Non-local and out of state travel may be covered (fully or partially) for up to $300 of the actual travel costs for selected applicants.

Limited number of lodging stipends are available for non-local teachers.

Light breakfasts Friday, Saturday, Sunday. Lunch on Friday and Saturday. Dinner on Friday and Saturday.

Who can apply
Teachers at any high school, teaching in any discipline, are welcome to apply. You do NOT have to be a "computer teacher", nor do you have to have any previous background in computing or technology. You DO need to have functional knowledge on using computers, and a passion for integrating computational thinking, computer science, IT into the classroom, particularly in creative or innovative ways.

The workshop is aimed at the high school level, but we can include middle school teachers who are working in partnership with high school participants. Email Yasko Endo, project manager at (yasko.endo@colorado.edu) to inquire about this possibility.

Applications for the summer workshops are typically accepted starting March of each year, with selection announcements occurring in April.

Slides
Clayton's presentations on:


 * [[Media:Representations.ppt|Representations]]
 * [[Media:Ants.ppt|Ants]]
 * [[Media:Ecsite.ppt|eCSite GK-12 project]]

2012 Schedule
Below is the schedule for the 2012 workshop.

Friday, June 15th, 2012
Morning: Atlas 200, directions with map

Goals: Intro to Computational Thinking and Computational Thinking Tools, making your first game


 * 8:15 - 8:30 Light breakfast, opportunity to install AgentSheets and AgentCubes on your laptop if you forgot
 * 8:30 - 9:00 Introduction of participants, and CU
 * 9:00 - 9:45 Introduction to computational thinking (conceptual): pedagogy, broadening participation
 * 9:45 - 11:30 Introduction to AgentSheets (hands on), making Frogger game
 * 11:30 Leave for Google

Afternoon: at Google 12pm


 * 12:00 - 1:30 Google: Lunch, visit and tour
 * 1:30 - 2:00 Return to CU
 * 2:00 - 4:45 Finish Frogger, submit game as required homework
 * 4:45 - 5:00 Contribute reflections on hands-on experience to 2012 CS4HS Reflection Doc
 * 5:00 End
 * 6:00 Dinner BJs Restaurant on Pearl Street, just West of Broadway)

Saturday, June 16th, 2012
Morning: Atlas 200

Goals: 3D Game Design, Classroom implementation


 * 8:30 - 9:00 Light breakfast
 * 9:00 - 10:00 Intro to AgentCubes, Gentle Slope 3D
 * 10:00 - 10:15 Break
 * 10:15- 12:00 Classroom Implementation (David Webb), reflect on CT patterns
 * 12:00 - 1:00 Lunch

Afternoon:


 * 1:00 - 2:30 Making 3D Pac-man
 * 2:30 - 2:45 Break
 * 2:45 - 4:45 Finish 3D Pac-man
 * 4:45 - 5:30 Submit your game
 * 6:30   Dinner at Tossa, 2400 Arapahoe, SE corner of Arapahoe and Folsom

Sunday, June 17th, 2012
Morning: Atlas 200

Goals: Transferring CT ski


 * 8:30 - 9:00 Light breakfast
 * 9:00 - 10:30 Use some sample STEM sims: virus, forest fires
 * 10:30 - 11:30 Make Avalanche Simulation including Scientific Visualization
 * 11:30 - 12:00 CS4HS Post Survey and Google Survey and CS4HS Reflection Doc
 * 12:00 Adjourn

After The Workshop
This week:


 * Submit your plan of implementation (how you will introduce game design and ideas related to Computational Thinking in your classes in the fall), including approximate timing, if you have not already done so in the CS4HS post-survey.


 * Contact your school IT group to have the software installed on the school computers. AgentSheets, Inc. can issue limited time use free software to teachers who will teach game design in their school. If you have problems with the install or license, contact Nadia at nadia@agentsheets.com

Summer:


 * Take advantage of your 180 day free copies of AgentSheets and AgentCubes to create new games, experiment with simulations,write lesson plans as you program.
 * Join EDMODO AgentSheets to continue collaborating with workshop attendees and a community of educators who use and support Scalable Game Design. Edmodo is an educator-only social networking site that is approved for use in schools.
 * "Like" us on Scalable Game Design Facebook

Fall:


 * Teach AgentSheets game design in your class/es and submit one or more written reports or creative feedback showing meaningful use of the workshop contents within the classroom - collecting stories from students, videos or photos of class in action (be sure to have student Media Permission forms completed), blog postings on Scalable Game Design Edmodo wall, testimonials sent to Yasko at yasko.endo@colorado.edu Submit by December 15th, 2012 to receive your stipend . Go innovative and wild - have you/your students write a song, poetry, create a collage.
 * AND, if you'd like to join the research project for Scalable Game Design, you can execute a full implementation of game design that includes gathering parental research consent forms, pre and post implementation data collection, uploading student games, and a short phone interview. A full classroom implementation provides an additional stipend of $125 plus sharing of data with you to use as evidence of the effectiveness of your innovative teaching methods! Implementation must take place, and all research tools completed, by December 1st, 2012 to receive your stipends.

Press Coverage
The 2010 CS4HS workshop was featured in the local Daily Camera newspaper.