forward thinking in technology and learning

Over the last several years, the “Computer Science in education ” wave has been building up strength and the last year has been one of the most productive and exciting as we have seen in CS Education. Our annual CSTA conference has increased attendance significantly every year. Schools are adding Computer Science in all grade levels. CS vocabulary ,which has been largely unknown, is starting to become mainstream. Knowing that your iPhone has 64GB of storage memory. The fact that you know how much bandwith you are paying for with your home ISP. The fact that you know what an ISP even is. The fact that robotics are cleaning your living room carpet and we can buy them at Costco. The fact that 3 of your friends have a drone. The fact that your 2nd grader did an Hour of Code and knew more than her teacher. The fact that technology-based summer camps over overflowing. The fact that colleges are recognizing Computer Science as a required course for entrance. The fact that most majors in college have some requirements for CS.

Computer Science is here. Schools are scrambling for teachers. Professional development opportunities for teachers wanting to know how to bring CS into their classroom is huge. Students and parents are demanding that their school offer CS.

And as Spiderman(or maybe his uncle?) said, “…with great power comes great responsibility.”

The political and academic leaders in the US may (or may not) know exactly to go about bringing CS into their education systems. They are needing guidance, resources, and leadership on how best to offer CS in the schools in their cities. CSTA is the only organization on the planet especially for educators who teach Computer Science. For those teachers charged with doing great things in their classroom, there is a place they can look to for help.

CSTA has become the organization that teachers look to for the face of Computer Science. What an awesome time to be part of CSTA! As a member, you can truly be on the ground floor of the CS “movement”. As a board member, you can have direct impact on the type of leadership that CSTA can offer, how and where it offers this leadership, and what this leadership even looks like. CS is one of the most dynamic “disciplines” in our schools. CSTA has the ability to be as dynamic as the field we represent.

If you are at a point in your career where you feel you can make a significant contributor in this space, we would love to have you! Consider applying?

Dave Reed (past board chair) answers some common questions about being a board member here.

Or apply here.

I just spent 6 days in Baltimore at the annual #CSTA2017 conference(CSTA = Computer Science Teachers Association). We had 700+ attendees and a record number of ehbitors. All of which is an incredible increase since even last year. Why? What’s going on? (He’s going to tell…He’s going to tell…(name the movie?)) I have many thoughts on that and the current changing nature of Computer Science and Computer Science education. But if I communicate these ideas in text, I would HAVE TO USE ALL CAPS THE WHOLE TIME, and I did not want to. Sooooooooooooo, go grab some coffee, get cumfy in your favorite chair, and sit back and enjoy my video-blog. WARNING: I get pretty into this stuff, so I think it’s like 20 minutes long……WELL WORTH IT I promise.

It it so exciting to be part of an educational transformation that I have been waiting on for a decade! “Computer Science” is finally making it’s way into mainstream education. Parents, students, administrators, teachers, politicians, and the world are finally starting to understand what it is, and what it is not. Some schools call keyboarding class “Computer Science”, while others misinterpret Desktop Publishing and word processing and video edit-ing as “Computer Science”. All valuable tool sets in life, but not Computer Science. So what then is “Computer Science?”

Great question.

First, why do I keep putting Computer Science in between “” ? I guess I could have put it in ALL CAPS? Ha!

Because the phrase itself is not accurate.

Ask 100 teachers from K- 12 and also from the college level and you might get 101 different answers (one might answere twice). Over the last 3 decades, the world of technology and the tools that power and give life to that technology have changed more rapidly and dynamically than any industry in recent history. For starters, the phrase “Computer Science” itself we have been using to represent all computing and technology-related areas of study. And at one time it was a narrowly defined area specifically targeting a very select type of person as well as very specific skillset; it was targeting(and hit dead center) the hard core engineer-minded person. That is where the traditional stereotypes came from. But over the last 3 decades, we’ve seen “Computer Science” become the backbone for most industries, much like reading and writing. Think about it: experts in any industry who also know how to create new digital tools to solve their problems quickly become the leaders in those industries. So we have seen Computer Science expand into, contort with, morph through, and merge alongside areas that can take advantage of what it offers: artificial intelligence, biocomputation, engineering, graphics and animation, ,human-computer interaction, business information systems, networking, cybersecurity, media, social media, people, aerodynamics, modeling, and economics. Just to name a few

Why this sudden recent attention and fuss about Computer Science?

People are starting to understand what it is, and hence, its value. What parent doesn’t want their child to have leading edge skills of creation as they enter the world?!

It’s quite simple. “Computer Science” (representing the various areas I talked about above) is quite simply a way of thinking and set of tools that allow a person to “capture their imagination.”

“……capture their imagination….”

Powerful.

What the heck does that even mean?

I’m not talking about simply jotting down your ideas on a piece of paper (although that is part of the process). I am not talking about getting a paint brush and drawing that image in your mind (although that is part of the process). I am not talking about making notes in the margins of the book you are reading. I am talking about taking your interactive & dynamic imagination and ideas(crazy ones accepted!) and bringing that to life on the screen or device in front of you.

In English class, a teacher asks you to think about something and perhaps write an essay or a poem. After you write that down, it can be read by others. In an art workshop, your teacher asks you to draw a picture of something beautiful and so you add color and lines to a canvas. And those are certainly beautiful, but they are also permanent; they are not interactive.(well, except for those cool 3D illusions things where the picture comes into focus, or those New York sidewalk paintings where you look from a certain angle to see the scene.)

Digital tools are interactive. They allow the tools themselves to become fully customizable by whoever is using them. They allow tools to even create other tools. Software can be designed to allow the user to have as many choices, selections, and options as wanted. And it can be used differently every time it is used. And it can be modified to expand it’s functionality. A smartphone app can incorporate the environment through sensors such location, temperature, angle, proximity, radio waves, and force…… and then also user-controlled elements such as touch screen, voice, selections, eye direction, even thoughts. A device can be an autonomous car, robotic arm, a Hololens, scientific instrument, a drone, or a camera. When times change, or demand changes, or ideas change, or needs change….so can the software. But maybe the software is fine, but the hardware changes? Maybe someone imagines a better, slicker, cheaper, nicer, different, or newer widget. Awesome. Now, we have have captured imaginations, even as they change in real time.

It never ends.

That is one reason why Computer Science is becoming mainstream. It never ends. Your project can always be updated, enhanced, and redesigned. New devices can always be incorporated. Fresh and even off-the-wall ideas can always be incorporated. Computer Science is the environment and set of tools that allows for that. In my own classes, we design apps, games, and simulations. I tell students, “…you will never be done with it, but you can get to a point where it is your best work at the time and it does what you wanted it to do at that time. There is always something you can add or a feature you can implement or improve. So go ahead and turn it in now, but continue to work on it on your own time long after it is submitted….” Many do just that.

In the project-based Computer Science class, there is no chapter that we have to finish. There is no lesson that signifies the “end of the learning.” There is no specific skillset or language that is all you need. It’s just time that is the bounds. The end of the quarter, semester, or school year are what determine the “end.” But because of the technology itself, they can continue to work on their project on their own phone, laptop, tablet, or smartTV at home, from anywhere on the planet (oh yeah, and also in a plane with wi-fi). Oter subject areas might stop for the summer or spring break, but Computer Science tends to keep on keepin’ on.

Apparently the saying and book, “Everything I Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten” really holds true even in, especially in, this world of technology. When we are 5 years old, the teacher asks us to draw pictures in our sketchbook, build things during craft time, use the colored markers to draw on the whiteboard. They are developing the skills that “capture imaginations.” Those tools were colored pencils, pipe cleaners, glue, glitter(ugh!) ,markers, stencils, and easels. Now in Computer Science we are doing the same thing, “capturing their imagination”, but doing so with a different set of tools, where the tools are constantly changing to handle the real world problems that are also constantly changing. The tools themselves are created through Computer Science.

Awesome.

That’s why Computer Science is at the forefront of educational conversations today.

It is soooooo exciting to see Computer Science starting to really take root in the U.S. education system. Through the efforts of national level organizations such as Code.org, CSTA, NCWIT. Through products and initiatives of innovative companies such as Lego, Microsoft, CoDrone….they are helping pave the way to getting Computer Science into classrooms. Professors and faculty from colleges, universities, high schools, middle schools, and even elementary schools are creating resources, partnering, putting on workshops, writing articles, and talking about it. Across private and public schools, rural and urban, and spanning socio-economic, religious, and gender boundaries as well. That is what is takes.

Why are we seeing this sudden “welcome”?

Well, part of this huge wave is just people simply starting to finally understand and accept that technology and the ability to understand, program,control, re-program, and create software and hardware is fundamentally crucial in a society which is virtually 100% dependent upon technology, regardless of the industry.

Parents are starting to demand that the schools in their districts include Computer Science, not disguised as a typing course, easy senior elective, or desktop publishing course, but as true rigorous Computer Science.

Students are realizing that regardless of the major you choose in college, or the career you choose to explore afterwards….Computer Science is part of the backbone of that discipline and any industry. Many of the physical tools, devices, communication tools, promotion tools, analytical tools, sensors, controls, and even client acquisition tools….all of those at some level are resting on a layer of Computer Science. In some of the the same ways as language , math , and science.

So looking forward, we now need to think about how we actually implement this in our schools. Districts simply giving marching orders to bring Computer Science into the curriculum might sound good for a newspaper article, brochure, admissions tour stop, or campaign speech, but the devil is in the details.

I’ll argue that we have to really think about what an awesome opportunity we have here. The “textbook” of Computer Science is not the same as a textbook in a history class. The way to learn Computer Science is not to sit back and listen to a teacher talk about it. We do not want to have classes in Computer Science that do not embrace and reflect that dynamic engaging world of digital technology outside school walls. Think of the excitement kids get when they get a new laptop, smart phone, or gadget. There is a reason they love that. There was a time where only the super nerds got excited about those things, now you are considered a nerd if you DO NOT get excited about them. How far we have come.

Multiple choice tests, traditional lecture and note taking, the questions at the back of the chapter, and doing the odd problems for homework are not going to capture the essence of what we are after.

Equally as important in knowing what Computer Science is…..is what Computer Science can do….and then DOING it.

We have a chance to invent the Computer Science classroom exactly as we want it. We can look at how we have done it over the last several decades and consider what worked and did not work so well. We have a chance to realize that the audience that is attracted to Computer Science classroom NOW is not the same as the audience of 20 years ago. We are not just targeting our hard core techies; we are targeting students who are interested in exploring Computer Science as a way of thinking and as a set of tools/skills that allow them to address and solve the problems in the areas they have passion for.

I am so excited to be a forefront of this movement. Building out what the educational side of the new Computer Science can be as engaging and dynamic as the industry/ discipline itself.

There is a different way to look at education. As a parent, teacher, student, administrator, or policy maker, keep your eyes and ears open, but look differently and listen better. If something I said here makes sense to you, then we should probably connect. Find me.

If you’ve read any of my blogs, you know that I am passionate about student-led, project-based learning environments. I believe in active learning where the students are actively acquiring knowledge and are proactive in their own learning and understanding….as well as applying that knowledge. The traditional lecture model of learning with students passively receiving information from the teacher in 45 minute chunks for 7 hours a day is something I don’t believe has a place in the school of 2016.

I am not suggesting that there is never a time for information to be given to a student, possibly even in lecture format.

“Wait. What? You just contradicted yourself!”, the world said.

Motivation in people is something that is internal. Sure, there can be incentives to get someone to do something, but ultimately, a person does something because they either want something or they need something. It is as simply as that.

Consider the traditional lecture & note-taking classroom experience. The teacher is giving the students a large quantity of information that is neither wanted, nor needed beyond getting ready for the upcoming test. But there has to be a reason for learning other than the upcoming test or Algebra 2 next year.

Students neither NEED or WANT what the teacher is “giving” them. Perhaps they could. They definitely should. Is there a way we can setup the classroom such that they DO want and need knowledge.

Consider the project-based classroom where students are building something, making something, writing something, programming something, researching something, calculating something, drawing something, and so on. The point is they are doing something. Now…in a well crafted project, the teacher has students propose projects where the teacher knows that a certain skillset, vocabulary, understanding, or ability will be needed in order to accomplish that project well. In that well crafted project, the students had direct input on the project they are proposing(very important!) So, now because students have buy-in of their own project, there are things they WANT to do to make it better. Right? Now is when it makes sense to GIVE the students something. Now might be when you might lecture to get an idea across, show them what something means, explain a relationship, or introduce a new skill. But don’t give them to everyone, and don’t take too long. In order to complete the project completely, the requirements of the project they proposed have them demonstrating, displaying, other otherwise using certain skills, ideas, concepts, or methodologies. Now, they NEED that “stuff” in order to complete the project. And they want to complete the project because it is something they care about.

Could it be that simple?

I’ll warn you…….you might find that once students take a hold of their own learning, they might not want to wait. They might learn online and with each other without you. They might figure stuff out on their own in order to get where they are NEEDING and WANTING to go.

Hmmmmm……

So, now the students both NEED and WANT something as part of their educational experience. Their internal motivation has been inspired. Perhaps that student who had not connected before DOES NOW. Perhaps that section of class which has just really had any pizzazz DOES NOW. Perhaps those abstract ideas that they never really got they DO NOW.

The result was the same…that they “got” the stuff you wanted them to get. The difference was how and when you gave it to them. Interesting enough, it is also possible you did not “give” it to them at all. They discovered it. They figured it out. They found out. The learned without you. Awesome if so.

That is my point about project based learning. In a well crafted project, it can help you accomplish things you had not before. And it might even allow your students to interact with your subject area in ways they had not before.

http://www.livescience.com/56587-how-ddos-cyberattack-caused-internet-outage.html

Hey world. This happened today and my guess is 50% of the people out there read the article and don’t really know what it means. 40% didn’t read the article. WE HAVE TO CHANGE THIS. Most of us are 100% (not 90%…100%) reliant on technology for our daily life, social life, and work life. If we lost our internet, many people would be lost, on many different levels.

If that doesn’t get your attention, spend 1 minute watching hack-attacks happens live around the world here: http://map.norsecorp.com/#/

It is officially time to make Computer Science with its many subcategories (robotics, artificial intelligence, cyber-security, software development, network security)…..it is time to make it a core class starting in pre-school and continuing throughout elementary, middle, high school, college, and beyond.

We live in a digital world. We live in the infancy of that world. Most people are clueless about the power of the technologies right in front of them.

We have to be better at understanding the tools in which we are using. We have to be able to make our own tools. We have to be able to fix tools that break. We have to be able to improve existing tools. And we have to be able to make better tools to defend ourselves against the bad guys.

“But that won’t happen to me”. Uhm, yes it will. It did today.

What are we waiting for?

Hey school leaders, parents, community leaders….We need YOU to be instruments of change

Begin the discussions that are needed to get our school to not just offer, but understand, realize, and embrace the various components of Computer Science.

Those who command technology and are in command of the technology will be the leaders in our world. Who do we want to be leaders?

Us or them?

It’s that time of the year where NCWIT, National Council for Women in Technology, takes time to recognize girls across the country for their accomplishments and interest in Computer Science.

Over the decades as technology, gadgets, networks, computers, and software have been becoming mainstream, it is the males of the industry who have received all the credit for that movement. While there have certainly been women who have been tremendously important for our current digital and technical age, it has tended to be driven by males.

Why is that important to notice?

What that means is that all design decisions were considered by males and addressed by mainly males. The questions being thought of and asked are by primarily males. The answers to those questions were generated by mostly males. The research of the technology itself was being done primarily by males. The software that interacts with the hardware was being written by primarily males. The professors teaching most of the classes in Computer Science (and related topics) were male. The curriculum to train students in Computer Science was being written by primarily males. All the assignments and projects that students did in school were designed primarily by males. Needless to say, that resulted in lots of males being attracted to the world of technology because it has been directly and indirectly marketed towards them.

You see my point. What we are seeing now in our world is the result of a male driven industry. Thankfully that is changing, but that change is coming ssssslllllllloooooooowwwww.

As we are seeing more females go into the various fields related to technology, I think we will see a new digital technology age and perhaps even a new technology revolution. Why? Because as females really begin becoming larger integral parts of the industry, assume leadership roles in the industry, command respect from their male counterparts in the industry, and start software and hardware companies….females will become an integral part of asking new questions, researching in new ways, writing code from new perspectives, brainstorming with new insights, and building and creating new products with new motivations.

We are starting to see some first steps towards this. Congratulations to The Association for Computing Machinery, Code.org, Computer Science Teachers Association, Cyber Innovation Center, and National Math and Science Initiative for creating a definition of what Computer Science is, and that definition explanation starts with this inclusion I am discussing here.

We the people in the world get to reap the benefits of this movement. Think of how much we love (and hate) our laptops, our watches, our phones, our GPS, our smartTVs, our sports technology….we can’t wait for the new wave of technology to take us to the next level!

Not sure exactly that the “next level” means? Go ask one of the girls in your high school Computer Science class…she’ll know.

Hey girls in high school: You’ve got a couple weeks left before the submission deadline. This might be a life changing opportunity towards your future.

Check it out: https://www.aspirations.org/participate/high-school

I understand many people in the world don’t really know what Computer Science is. First let me explain clearly what it is not: It is not Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel, or Google Apps. It is not photo editing. It is not making a movie. It is certainly not keyboarding. Those are all wonderful tools to learn and YES they are practical and helpful , but-—NO–they are not Computer Science.

So, what then is Computer Science? Probably not what you think. And certainly not what it was 25 years ago, 15 years ago, or even 10 years ago. It has a dynamic property of being redefined, and in some cases reinvented continuously. The world of technology changes so rapidly, the science(and art) that has been developing around that continues to develop as well. But, we do know that there are ways to bring together creativity, puzzles, imagination, software and hardware, algorithms, and hard work to help solve problems. Some of those problems are simple and local, and some are world wide and life changing. That’s Computer Science.

So, how does that look when it’s implemented in schools?

Be careful, this is probably not how class looked like when you were in school and it very well may not be how most schools look today. And it does not involve multiple choice tests and the questions at the end of chapter. My classroom has no “front”, so it is not possible to lecture to the class while they wait for knowledge to come to them. All chairs and tables have wheels so they can move into any configuration needed. Whiteboards are on every wall, so students and teachers can discuss ideas together where-ever they are.

Student do not have to raise their hand to talk and they are encouraged to get up out of their seat anytime they like. Class is loud, not quiet–and that’s all on purpose. You see…knowledge and understanding is not mine to give to them. My role is simply to connect them to it. They’ll have to earn it, work for it, figure it out, and apply it to their own efforts. Enough of my ideas…let’s take a look at what’s happening every day:

In high school, all athletes must take an online concussion test; Trey developed another concussion test. While standing in front of the Kinect camera, the athlete is led through 3 sequential tests of balance that are analyzed by his program as you do them. The results are recorded for future comparison.

Carter developed a digital cheerleader routine tutorial. Standing in front of the Kinect camera, the athlete is led through the experience of an actual complex cheer sequence. As the camera “detects” the person has correctly completed each step, there is confirmation on the screen.

Elen developed a virtual chemistry lab that leads students through a series of activities, practices, procedure directions, including putting on your lab coat. The student does this all while standing in front of the Kinect camera.

Courtney developed a virtual crime scene analysis program for her AP Biology class. Standing in front of the Kinect camera, students collect potential DNA evidence, go to the lab and actually extract the DNA, and finally compare it to other samples to discover the culprit.

Katherine developed a cartwheel tumbling analysis. While in front of the Kinect camera, you actually perform a real cartwheel, 3 snapshots are taken: one before, one during, and one after the cartwheel to allow you to analyze your motion and position.

McLean developed an interactively practice for learning the English language. As you stand in front of the Kinect camera, random words fall from above you, your challenge is to determine the part of speech of each falling word, actually “grab” it with your hand and “drop” it into the appropriate bucket.

David developed a program that allows the human body, standing in front of the Kinect camera, to generate angles and geometric shapes.

Benjamin developed an interactive language learning experience. Standing in front of Kinect camera, the human body can be used to highlight & unhighlight words, move phrases around, and interact with words on the “air” around you.

Ryan developed a geologic time discovery activity. Standing in front of the Kinect, students must grab various animals and place them in the correct geologic period.

Merritt developed an interactive SAT vocabulary practicing activity. Standing on a dance pad, students control all the activity using their feet. Be ready for the high energy intense speed bonus round.

Richard developed a history learning activity that combined his love of track practice and history. As you literally run and jump hurdles in front of the Kinect camera, you have the chance to respond to questions…all before you make a mad dash for the finish line.

Wyatt programmed his tablet to take GPS satellite readings in order to command a robot to move towards it’s destination.

Travis and Jacob created a voice controlled currency converter app for their mobile phone.

Elizabeth took her part time cashier job experience and put it on the screen to allow younger kids to learn how to calculate correct payment amount when buying things. Using the game controller, the customer pays the exact amount of bills and coins by dragging them onto the coin tray.

These programs took anywhere from a month to 3 months to develop. And they all involved some pretty serious Computer Science to figure out how to implement. But they also required artistic design, storytelling, marketing and sales, math, logical algorithms, some advanced physics, and face to face presentations. They all involved collaboration with other students. Students were evaluated by their day to day work, by their completed program, by their weekly BLOG posts, by their peers, and also by an “unknown” panel of judges. I did not administer any pop quizzes or tests…and yet not once did I ever have any issues with students working hard, learning very challenging topics and skills, pushing the envelope, or losing interest. We had many speakers in class including a copyright lawyer, an executive manager at an international game website, the CEO and entire game design team of a major game design firm, staff from a marketing department, a visit by the head of school to discuss mission statements, and even employees in the Xbox division of Microsoft.

The final presentations were done for 2 hours in the library by demonstrating their completed project to a panel of judges ranging from a professional game designer to Computer Science teachers to hard core game players to Computer Science college students to fellow high schoolers to a head of school to a national board certified teacher. You see my point: students had to consider their audience as each judge came to see their project. How you present to a Computer Science teacher is very different to how you present to a college student and even more so different than how you present to corporate marketing manager and yet different again to how you present to a person who designs games for a living. I am 100% certain that this type of experience is more valuable than any paper exam I could give.

I am firm believer that Computer Science should be a core subject area from the time students can read and write and express themselves. Those who command the technology of the time will be the leaders of business, entertainment, philanthropy, research, and academia. We cannot wait until students have already developed their learning styles and passions to introduce Computer Science. It must be incorporated into that learning throughout their entire educational path. This is crucial and fundamental to the United States maintaining its place as one of the world’s leading producers of thinkers, great minds, and game changers.
There is a different way to approach education. If something I said in this post makes sense to you, please browse my other posts…you will most likely find that we have a tremendous amount in common–in which case we should connect.

Finally being a nerd is cool. Being a nerd is marketable, profitable, and even sexy. It’s also finally realistic and advantageous and certainly needed by society.

There was a time where access to electronic and digital tools was non-existent for “regular” folk; using electronic tools to collect and analyze information was not something you or I could reasonably do; the cost of gadgets and digital equipment was so high that only elite scientists, hard core engineers, prestigious universities, government agencies, and large corporations could even afford it, much less use it. Being part of the world of science, research, and discovery was just not possible for the layman.

But over the last few decades, our world had changed. You can send in a swab and get a DNA analysis in 2 weeks. Most people have more electronic gadgetry in their houses than the US Government had total in 1945. My phone can analyze my brainwaves while I sleep. Your wristwatch has more capacity than the computers that helped get us to the moon in the 1960s. We’ve gotten better at manufacturing, which means the quality and quantity of instruments, toys, tools, and gadgets are better, cheaper, and easier to find. So more and more people suddenly have access to a world they never did before. So we’ve seen what used to be only found in university research labs now available at Best Buy and Walmart.

As I look around my house as I write this, I see a 32” LCD TV, an Apple TV, a computerized telescope that can pinpoint a galaxy 200,000,000 light-years away, and my son playing FIFA soccer on his smartphone on a screen that is clearer than his eye can actually interpret. I see a cable modem which connects my house to a network that goes across the entire globe called the World Wide Web (that still amazes me!). I see a device which lets me change the channel or volume of my TV without any physical wiring. I see a camera which records 4 hours of live video as I run my obstacle-course races. I see 3 laptops that can each hold over 1 TB of data which, by the way, is more than the entire internet in 1991. In just 15 years the internet has gone from a single webpage to hundreds of millions of websites today. My 11-year old daughter commands her own digital device with more confidence than her 2 grandparents.

My point? Science and technology is main stream. Anyone can see it, afford it, buy it, make something with it, design/redesign with it, sell it, and use it to learn and discover. And because of this–everyone does! It’s normal to have the same gadgets which, in another time, would qualify you to be king/queen of the nerds but now it just makes you cool…I mean normal.

Think about it. Kids all over the world woke up Christmas morning and screamed with joy when they opened up their new smartphones under the tree. Dad smiled enthusiastically at his new 10” tablet with an accelerometer. Mom loved her new GPS unit for her electric car, and grandparents took hundreds of pictures with their new wireless digital cameras which posted automatically to their Facebook account. It’s cool to be excited about nerd toys.

My son Cade and I went to go see a movie, Interstellar, built around the idea of time dilation due to gravity near a black hole. He says it was the best movie he’s seen in 5 years. (If you also loved that, read THIS best selling book.) Most people don’t even know who Alan Turing is, yet there is a top movie The Imitation Game made about his life. Stephen Hawking, arguably one of the most talented scientists in history, has a movie made about his life. He did not invent the car or airplane or some other item which we can all relate to–he studies black hole event horizons and theoretical physics. And who did not either read the biography of or see the movie about Steve Jobs, CEO of a big software hardware company we all know as Apple? Bill Gates might be more popular than the most famous professional athlete. Mark Zuckerberg broke out of the nerd shell by being the focus of a blockbuster “The Social Network” which was seen mostly by non-nerds. Barnes and Nobles has an entire section in the magazine area dedicated to gadgets and devices. I know several of my non-techy-friends’ kids got Lego Robotics kits to explore and they were on cloud 9 (get it? Heehee). My daughter loved spending some of her Christmas money on the professional version of Minecraft for her iPhone, so she could design interactive 3D worlds on her iPhone to share with her friends. Uhm…hello…did I just say a socially minded 6th grade girl spent her money on an app that she used to design interactive 3D worlds? Yes I did. That’s my girl. My department’s middle school teacher, Bob Irving, is bringing Minecraft programming into his 7th and 8th grade curriculum this spring. In fact, his Minecraft club is the largest club in the middle school and they are currently designing our entire school campus in Minecraft. Over 90,000,000 people in 180+ countries joined the Hour of Code movement and wrote their first computer program.

Ladies and Gentlemen, we are there. The world is officially different. Kids of today for the first time ever are truly living in a world that is fundamentally unlike the world in which we grew up. What used to be the world of the nerds is now called life of a typical person.

Why is that important? Because it means that we are now going to have a wide variety of people entering the world of science and discovery who may not have before. The gadgets we have had over the last several decades were created by one type of stereotypical person, but now we are seeing people of all colors, religions, races, and genders enter this world thinking differently. They will find things we have not yet found. They will look at problems with a new twist. They will create and design with different goals. They will bring into the world that which has not yet been brought simply because they CAN.

In the beginnings of the digital age, we saw the world of users of technology. Now, we enter into a new world of creators. If you thought that the world had changed dramatically in your own lifetime—get ready…we ain’t seen nothin’ yet!

The world of the nerds has just become the normal everyday world that we are all part of it. Our schools are finally starting to embrace this instead of fighting it. STEM education is becoming something that is not just extracurricular, but a core component of education. Parents are starting to demand that schools have this as a fundamental part of their child’s education. Computer Science is finding its way into classrooms in every country, at every grade level. Students are signing up for classes and entering degree programs in engineering, technology, and science fields unlike any other time in history.

Yep. We have arrived. And as a Computer Science teacher in high school and at the leading edge of the charge, I am loving every second of it.

There is a different way to look at education. As a parent, teacher, student, administrator, or policy maker, keep your eyes and ears open, but look differently and listen better. If something I said here makes sense to you, then we should probably connect. Find me.

Congratulations to hundreds of high school girls around the country who have just been recognized by NCWIT( National Council for Women in Technology) at the national and/or state level for their accomplishments and participation in Computer Science. In my home state of South Carolina, we’re so excited that 6 of the 12 awards were from Porter-Gaud! I love that our school embraces Computer Science, and our students see that value in their own core education.

But, I am especially honored that girls are an integral part of our CS classes at every level. In many schools, Computer Science classes tend to be all-boys clubs. In industry, the perception is that it is male-driven. But if you look deeper you find that perception is not necessarily reality. In fact, over the last many decades, there have been some tremendous contributions from females(i.e. to name a few: Marissa Mayer, Radia Perlman, Fran Bilas, Helen Greiner, Lixia Zhang, Christina Amon, Anita Borg, Ada Lovelace, and Mary Lou Jepsen). They don’t necessarily get much credit or recognition for that leadership, but they were invaluable to us being where we are now. In many of today’s top companies (i.e. HP, Yahoo, Facebook, Code.org), we are seeing female leaders at all levels of management. And as images of females in those types of roles become what girls in school see and hear, we will start to see the gender-percentage inequalities even out.

…and not only is this crucial for industries related to technology, but also to you and me–the consumer.

why?

READ ON

In the CS program at my school, we are now seeing about 30% female. If you look in one of our classes, you might confuse it with a typical liberal arts history or English class…it will have boys and girls of all races, interests and backgrounds—-not the stereotypical super-techno make-up one might expect in traditional Computer Science. And I get why there have been inequalities: when you(a student) look through the window of a classroom, you want to be able to picture yourself sitting there with people you can connect with. I remember recently being crushed when one of our graduating female students took the “Computer Science” tour at one of better universities in the southeast, and was disheartened when she looked into the Computer Science lab on a tour—99% male, and the two females who were in their did not even look up. While there are some universities that have changed the way they do business–and are actively recruiting females–Carnegie Melon, University of Washington, Georgia Tech, University of Texas, Wofford–the majority have traditional recruiting , which means they attract the exact same student they attracted 15 years ago. The world is a different place than it was when computing devices (as we know them) came onto the scene. Now the world around us is dynamic and interactive and engaging. Girls are just as savvy with their tech devices as boys. Technology and it’s place in society, who uses it, who creates with it, what it does, and where it can help us….is completely different. What was once a discipline for the engineering-minded elite, is now an attractive major for those people who might never have been have even given it a second look. Now we see biology students, business majors, educators, and political scientists who need a different set of skills to help them solve the problems in their industries—and that skill set is called Computer Science.

So, it’s working. I am not sure exactly why or how….but it is. Just the conversation itself is a start. Not just Computer Science, but girls in Computer Science as well. It’s all over the news, in our schools, on TV, in movies, and in books they read. CODE.ORG’s Hour of Code initiative has reached millions of students across world. The girls in our program are as excited to be there as we are to have them. And the world needs more females in fields in which females have been underrepresented for far too long. Not really sure if it is a nurture or nature thing, but regardless, we NEED females to be leaders in the world of digital creation. The software, hardware, tools, devices, and gadgets that come on the market need some fresh and different thought processes behind them. We need fresh design ideas from different perspectives. Thank goodness for the different viewpoints, interpretations, and priorities the female mind brings to class. I know our girls are better for the experience…but I’ll also argue that our boys are better off as well. Classes are more balanced. Problems are approached differently. Collaboration happens differently. Boys also see females as a regular part of their technology-creation experience. They see their female peers as significant contributors to class. They see females as skill leaders and as techno-equals.

And that translates to the marketplace, when those students find their way into business, they expect to see the same multi-gender environment there. And they value that mix. Society then reaps the benefits because the new technologies we get solve new problems in new ways, allowing us to make the world a better place.

We are in the infancy of the technological digital age. We barely know where we are, much less where we are going. At our current rates, we already know that there will NOT be anywhere close to enough students of ANY gender to fill the many roles needed in this area for the United States to be a leader. Elementary, Middle, and High schools really have no idea what Computer Science is, much less how and where and when it fits into the educational systems. Business leaders and parents can help by pushing those schools to be more proactive and innovative. And we want females part of this revolution. Colleges and Universities: you have to help by demanding that your incoming freshmen are well versed in Computer Science,

Research indicates that around the 8th grade is where we see dramatic drop-offs in girls being part of the sciences, especially Computer Science. It is crucial that girls get a good dose of Computer Science BEFORE THEN, so they can actively choose to make it a part of their education as they move through school. We have to start early and let our girls experience Computer Science as a regular part of their education earlier and not as something extra-curricular. I am excited when I hear about amazing things happening in schools all over the country (public, private, big, small, lower income, higher income, rural, urban). Programs such as Microsoft Expert Educator program, NCWIT(National Council for Women in Technoogy) ,Grace Hopper , CSTA(Computer Science Teachers Association)

and innovative teachers with a CS edge to them such as Becky Keene, Jamie Ewing, Melanie Grace, Alfred Thompson, Lou Zulli, Mark Guzdial Don Wettrick,Andi Li , Robyn Hrivnatz, Bob Irving, Darko Sadler , Todd Beard, Adam Michlin, Aaron Maurer, Barbara Ericson are leading the way, breaking down stereotypes, and storming through barriers to help technology, but more importantly creation with technology, be an integral part of classrooms.

There is a different way to look at education. As a parent, teacher, student, administrator, or policy maker, keep your eyes and ears open, but look differently and listen better. If something I said here makes sense to you, then we should probably connect. Find me.