BCS Certificate in Computer Science Teaching Yvonne Walker

BCS Certificate in Computer Science Teaching Yvonne Walker National CAS Hub Co-ordinator Making IT Good for Society Developed with

BCS Certificate in Computer Science Teaching Purpose of the Certificate • Certificate is the established standard for Computer Science teachers • Academically rigorous and respected • Teachers with subject knowledge, classroom skills and confidence, making a difference in the classroom • Supports Making IT Good for Society • Good teachers = good students = good society

BCS Certificate in Computer Science Teaching Who is it for? Teachers who: - • Are committed to their professional development • Are developing their skills as a Computing teacher • Make a difference to learning in their classrooms • Would like professional recognition of their competence. • Teachers in Primary and Secondary Schools

BCS Certificate in Computer Science Teaching What is it? • • Primary and Secondary versions (relevant to phase not standard) Bi-monthly enrolments One year to complete from time of enrolment Designed to acknowledge your teaching commitments Work at your own pace Independent and Guided Routes Guided route provides support for parts 2 and 3 via live online courses Online learning environment – guidance, submissions and communications

BCS Certificate in Computer Science Teaching What evidence do you need to supply? Part One • Details of at least 20 hours of CPD attended (master teacher, hub meetings, conferences, etc) in 24 months prior to final submission with reflections, impact and next steps. Part Two • A relevant and working programming project demonstrating programming skills beyond KS 4 (secondary) and beyond KS 2 (primary) Part Three • A report on an action research classroom investigation relating to pedagogical strategies used to teach the computer science elements of the Computing curriculum

BCS Certificate in Computer Science Teaching Why 3 parts? Part One • Demonstrating competence requires commitment to lifelong learning • Demonstrates engagement with professional development opportunities Part Two • Learning to program should be followed up by actually making something • Consolidation and extension of the learning is essential for confident teaching Part Three • Teaching computer science effectively is new to most teachers • The development of appropriate teaching and learning strategies and being reflective is a key part of professional development.

BCS Certificate in Computer Science Teaching How are you supported? • Personal log in to secure online Certificate Learning Environment (CLE) • Comprehensive guidance on how to gather, present and submit your evidence available on CLE • Allocated an e-assessor for the Certificate • Parts 2 and 3 you will submit project plan and receive formative feedback before starting your projects • You are allowed a draft submission for each of the 3 parts and will receive formative feedback before presenting your final submission for assessment

BCS Certificate in Computer Science Teaching Online Certificate Learning Environment

BCS Certificate in Computer Science Teaching What if I need more support? Guided Route • Programming Course in Python (Secondary) and Scratch (Primary) to support Part Two • Pedagogy Course to support Part Three • Live online course • Weekly sessions, small groups • E-tutor for support and guidance • Support for defining and developing projects for each part • Online forums for peer support and encouragement • Great value for money

BCS Certificate in Computer Science Teaching What sort of projects for Part Two? • A traffic lights online tool to support students needing help in class • A tool to help KS 2 remember their homework tasks • A quiz on computer hardware • Vending machine demonstration • Tool for emotive awareness use in tutor groups • Caesar cipher encryption demonstration

BCS Certificate in Computer Science Teaching Vending Machine demo KS 3 The Machine KS 1/2 Guitar Tuner using Gadgeteer and VB. NET

BCS Certificate in Computer Science Teaching What sort of projects for Part Three? • Teacher-led vs exploratory approaches to learning programming • Using flow-charting to support both the teaching and learning of low-level languages • Strategies for teaching drag-and-drop vs text-based programming • Approaches to teaching sorting in primary • Paired programming as a method of learning to code • Supporting numeracy in Computing lessons

BCS Certificate in Computer Science Teaching What sort of evidence is required for Part Three? • A write-up of your action research - typically around 4 A 4 pages • A blog • A video. • Academic referencing not needed • Investigation should include some observations on the impact, with some data collection if relevant, and/or examples of student work.

BCS Certificate in Computer Science Teaching What do teachers say? Working on the program really helped to improve my understanding of code. I'm not sure I would have attempted the program if it wasn't for the certificate, due to time constraints and workload. I thoroughly enjoyed carrying out Part 3, it forced me to develop high quality resources, to gather student voice and also to be a reflective practitioner. I really enjoyed being able to choose my own research project. [I liked …] the encouragement to think about the way I teach and the technologies I teach, and to reflect on CPD and the other steps I take to ensure my subject knowledge is relevant and up-to-date.

BCS Certificate in Computer Science Teaching What do teachers say? “This was an exciting course with everything incorporated to help the transition from ICT to Computing as a teacher supporting the changes in the POS from ICT to Computing” “I now feel I am more qualified to teach Computing” (business specialist originally). “The BCS certificate is essential for ICT teachers moving to Computer Science” “…. programming has changed the dynamics of the classroom. The students are more excited at what they create. . ”

Thank You Education Team BCS L&D Nadine Vaillant Hill Education Product Manager October 2016 Nadine. vaillanthill@bcs. uk

FAQ How long does the Certificate take to complete? This will be completely individual, depending on your starting point. In total you have up to one year to complete the Certificate. If you have strong programming skills already it may only take a few months to complete. If you need to spend time on developing your programming skills it could take up to the full year to gain the certificate. What do I have to do to complete the Certificate? Part 1 – you need to document and reflect on at least 20 hours of CPD that you have undertaken in the computer science aspects of Computing. Part 2 – you need to develop a programming project of your choice that demonstrates technical skills beyond KS 2 for primary teachers or KS 4 for secondary teachers. If you already have good programming skills appropriate to the phase you teach then you would need to spend few weeks or so developing a small project to demonstrate these. If you are still learning programming then you will obviously take much longer to build up your skills. Part 3 – you need to carry out an investigation into a particular aspect of the pedagogy of teaching Computing. This will need careful planning, and then a few weeks to carry it out, plus some time to write up your observations.

FAQ Does the Certificate carry university credits? No, the Certificate does not carry university credits because it is a professional qualification. However it would be a good starting point for you if you later wished to go on to study for a postgraduate certificate or Master’s degree in Computing Education - these are now being offered by several universities. It is deliberately complementary to such academic courses and does not have the same requirements in terms of reading/referencing literature etc that you would expect in an academic course. Does it matter if I change schools during the year I am enrolled on the Certificate? No as long as you are still teaching a change of school will not affect your completing the certificate? Is it possible to defer my certificate once enrolled on the certificate? These will be reviewed on a case by case basis.

FAQ My school would like to be invoiced for the cost of the certificate. Is that possible? Yes, on registration please select payment by invoice. Do I need to be a qualified teacher in order to enrol on the certificate? In most cases, yes. The teaching requirement reflects the fact that this is professional recognition of qualified teachers who are currently teaching. If you are not a qualified teacher but regularly teach Computing we would consider these applications on a case by case basis.