Remedying misperceptions of computer science among middle school students

Authors:
Shuchi Grover;Roy Pea;Stephen Cooper
Affiliations:
Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA;Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA;Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
Venue:
Proceedings of the 45th ACM technical symposium on Computer science education
Year:
2014

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Abstract

Past research extensively points to gross misperceptions of the discipline of Computer Science among students in middle and high school. As efforts to introduce computing education in K-12 gains traction in tandem with initiatives that address issues of interest and attitudes towards CS, misperceptions of computing as a discipline must also be addressed as early as middle school, which is known to be a key time for identity building. This paper shares the results of a curricular intervention that aims to show CS to students in a new light - in real world contexts and as a creative and problem-solving discipline; as something bigger and broader than the "computer-centric" view that students are known to harbor.