Fostering Computational Thinking and Design Thinking in the IB PYP, MYP and DP

2020 Fostering Computational Thinking and Design Thinking in the IB PYP, MYP and DP Prepared by James D. Slotta, Ph.D. Jie Chao, Ph.D., Mike Tissenbaum, Ph.D. Final Report: Fostering Computational Thinking and Design Thinking in the IB Acknowledgements The authors gratefully acknowledge the participation of all IB teachers, school leaders and coordinators, who responded to our survey with such insight. We also received crucial input from program coordinators as well as specific course designers, which helped guide our organization and analyses. Finally, the IB Research office must be acknowledged for their support of this work, including the development and administration of the online survey, communications with all schools and teachers, coordination of data and analytic support. In particular, Dr. Sarah Manlove provided ongoing, exceptional input during research meetings, and guidance in the preparation of the report. Magdalena Balica, IB Senior Education Policy Research Manager provided invaluable editorial assistance and input into the structure of the report. Finally, we thank Dr. Bradley Shrimpton, head of IB Research, for his support of this project, and his final review comments. The commissioning of this research reflects a true interest, on the part of the IB, in understanding how its programmes are advancing in these important areas, and in providing evidence-based assessments that can inform further development of those programmes. We hope our research and this report have contributed to this valuable effort. Author Biographies Jim Slotta is a Professor and President’s Chair of Education and Knowledge Technologies at The University of Toronto. Since 1998, he has collaborated with hundreds of middle and high school teachers in designing and investigating K-12 STEM inquiry, including design and computational thinking. Jie Chao is a Learning Scientist at the Concord Consortium. Her work focuses on designing and researching learning environments that support the development of computational thinking and other emerging competencies. She is currently leading multiple grant-funded projects to integrate computational thinking into STEM learning. Mike Tissenbaum is an Assistant Professor in Curriculum & Instruction and Educational Psychology at The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). Mike has spent over a decade designing and studying K-12 STEM + Computing initiatives across the globe. Mike is also currently serving as an affiliate faculty member at UIUC’s Siebel Center for Design, where he supervises research into Human Centered Design across K-12 and post-secondary contexts. i Final Report: Fostering Computational Thinking and Design Thinking in the IB Table of Contents Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................. i Author Biographies ................................................................................................................................. i Executive Summary ........................................................................................................................ 1 1. Context and Scope ........................................................................................................................... 1 2. Research Method ............................................................................................................................. 1 3. Main Findings .................................................................................................................................. 3 3.1 Literature review ............................................................................................................................................ 3 3.2 Curriculum audit ............................................................................................................................................ 8 3.3 Survey of teachers ......................................................................................................................................... 9 4. Considerations for IB programmes ................................................................................................... 11 Section 1: Literature Review ......................................................................................................... 15 Methodology: How this literature review was conducted ................................................................. 15 Theme 1. What are the definitions of CT and DT? ................................................................................ 16 Definition of Design Thinking as competence .................................................................................................. 17 Definition of Computational Thinking as competence ..................................................................................... 19 The relationship between DT and CT ................................................................................................................ 22 Theme 2: Curricular integration and student learning progressions ............................................... 23 The integration of competencies ..................................................................................................................... 23 Student learning progressions for DT and CT .................................................................................................. 25 Theme 3: Assessment of DT and CT ..................................................................................................... 28 Assessing CT ...................................................................................................................................................... 28 Assessing DT ...................................................................................................................................................... 29 Theme 4. Learning contexts and environments ................................................................................. 30 Theme 5. Teacher practice and professional development ............................................................... 32 What do teachers need to know in order to teach with DT and CT? .............................................................. 33 What Professional Development strategies have been identified? ................................................................ 34 Section 2: How are DT and CT Currently Incorporated in IB Programmes? ............................... 37 Method (document analysis) ............................................................................................................... 37 The Diploma Programme ..................................................................................................................... 40 The Middle Years Programme ............................................................................................................. 42 ii Final Report: Fostering Computational Thinking and Design Thinking in the IB The Primary Years Programme ............................................................................................................ 44 Discussion .............................................................................................................................................. 47 Section 3. What are IB Teachers’ Understandings and Implementation of Design and Computational Thinking? ............................................................................................................ 49 Method (survey of IB teachers) ........................................................................................................... 49 Teachers’ understanding of DT and CT ................................................................................................ 51 Teachers’ opinions about the importance of DT and CT .................................................................... 55 Teachers’ strategies and approaches .................................................................................................. 57 The Diploma Programme .................................................................................................................................. 58 The Middle Years Programme .......................................................................................................................... 63 The Primary Years Programme ......................................................................................................................... 66 Discussion ............................................................................................................................................... 71 Section 4: What are the Key Challenges & Considerations for Integrating CT and DT? ............. 73 Challenges confronting IB teachers and programmes ...................................................................... 73 Considerations ...................................................................................................................................... 74 Within-programme considerations .................................................................................................................. 74 Cross-programme recommendations .............................................................................................................. 75 Future research ..................................................................................................................................... 77 References

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