Examine a range of pedagogical approaches suitable for teaching computing in Key Stage 3 (Grade 6–8 in the USA). In the first two weeks of the course, you'll be introduced to a range of pedagogical approaches suitable for Key Stage 3. You'll look at a range of pedagogies aimed at developing your students' computational thinking skills, from unplugged approaches to PRIMM, and more. You'll also investigate worked examples and targeted tasks such as Parson's Problems.
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In the final week of the course, you'll see several of these pedagogies in action as you work on a rock-paper-scissors game, and you'll think about how the teaching could be adapted for use with your students.
What you'll learn
Over the following three weeks, you will:
- Describe a range of pedagogical approaches suitable for use with 11- to 14-year-olds
- Demonstrate an understanding of how these approaches can be used in the classroom
- Evaluate the suitability of each approach for a particular audience and teaching objective
- Produce a lesson plan using one of the pedagogical techniques addressed in the course
Syllabus
You will cover:
- Computational thinking
- The unplugged approach
- Use-Modify-Create and PRIMM
- Worked examples and live coding
- Pair programming
- Parson's Problems
- Using functions, loops, variables, and selection to create a rock-paper-scissors game
