Evaluating the role of professional development on elementary teachers’ knowledge, comfort, and beliefs related to teaching computer science to students with high-incidence disabilities

Abstract

This article reports results from the implementation of a model of professional development (PD) to help K-5 teachers develop the knowledge and skills to teach Computer Science (CS) in classrooms of diverse students, including students with high-incidence disabilities. This article describes our Inclusive CS model of PD, how we made the PD model available to teachers during a pandemic and presents quantitative and qualitative results about the impact of the PD on teachers’ knowledge, comfort, and beliefs related to teaching computer science to students. Results indicate that the teachers’ knowledge, comfort, beliefs and perceptions about teaching CS to students with disabilities significantly improved. Teachers’ knowledge and understanding of Universal Design for Learning for supporting students in learning about CS also improved.

Keywords:

• Computer science education
• professional development
• special education
• teacher beliefs
• teach perceptions
• universal design for learning

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on Contributors

Amy Hutchison is the Fayard Family Professor of Early Literacy at the University of Alabama where she studies digital literacies.

Kristie Gutierrez is an Assistant Professor at Old Dominion University where she studies ST EM education and career access.

Jamie Colwell is an Associate Professor at Old Dominion University where she studies disciplinary literacy.

Anya Evmenova is a Professor at George Mason University where she studies assistive technologies.

Jeff Offutt is a Professor of computer science at George Mason University.

Margaret Gross is a graduate student at George Mason University.

Additional information

Funding

This work was conducted with support from the National Science Foundation, award #1837380.