Kids should code: why ‘computational thinking’ needs to be taught in schools | Jim Chalmers and Tim Watts | Comment is free | theguardian.com

Approximate Reading Time: < 1 minuteLearning to code is about understanding the tools and devices that are all around us, so that we have control rather than the people who made those tools. Kids should code: why ‘computational thinking’ needs to be taught in schools … Continue reading →

MIT Computer Scientists Demonstrate the Hard Way That Gender Still Matters | WIRED

Approximate Reading Time: < 1 minuteDisappointing, but not surprising that women continue to face this kind of crap. MIT Computer Scientists Demonstrate the Hard Way That Gender Still Matters | WIRED. “We’re 3 female computer scientists at MIT, here to answer questions about programming and … Continue reading →

Computing’s Narrow Focus May Hinder Women’s Participation: Context matters | Computing Education Blog

Approximate Reading Time: < 1 minuteA big part of what attracted me to computer science was what I could do with what I was learning. That, and the fact that programming is largely about lists, organizing, and puzzles – all things that women often find … Continue reading →

The 2014 ESA Essential Facts is Out

Approximate Reading Time: < 1 minutehttp://www.theesa.com/facts/pdfs/ESA_EF_2014.pdf A few of the highlights that stood out for me: Women and men are roughly equal in terms of who plays (though they do tend to play different games). Gameplay on smartphones and mobile devices is on the rise. … Continue reading →

Course Design is Scholarly Work and Deserves Attribution

Approximate Reading Time: 3 minutesMy course websites used to be public, but I got tired of others taking my design work w/o permission or attribution. Now most of my courses are password protected. I hadn’t really thought about my syllabi until last year when … Continue reading →

Comparing Gamification, Serious Games and Simulations

Approximate Reading Time: 2 minutesComparing Gamification, Serious Games and Simulations.   My last post complained about being shut down on several LinkedIn groups because I disagreed with the poster. This is one of the articles that apparently needed to be protected by flagging my … Continue reading →

Weekly Web Round-Up (to August 2, 2014)

Approximate Reading Time: 2 minutesChangeGamer – Home “ChangeGamer promotes the use of computer games to study themes such as energy, climate change, natural disasters, the environment, economics, politics, history and science. The main function of ChangeGamer is to find high-quality games, and to create … Continue reading →

The real 10 algorithms that dominate our world — Medium

Approximate Reading Time: < 1 minuteThe real 10 algorithms that dominate our world — Medium. I’ve long thought that every discipline is its own culture. Each has a particular language, ways of working, humour, and generally looking at the world. For a computer scientist, everything … Continue reading →