Ife Opportunity PO Box 166661 | Little Rock, AR 72206 | 501/396-9591
[email protected] | http://ifeopportunity.wordpress.com
Ife Opportunity Hour of Code Report of Activities December 31, 2014 Summary Ife Opportunity is an organization committed to creating solutions that expand opportunity and promote equity in education, health, and other critical areas. In December 2014, Ife Opportunity organized its first educational event which introduced elementary and middle school students to computer science using Hour of Code tutorials (www.hourofcode.org). The Hour of Code is sponsored by Code.org in celebration of Computer Science Education Week. Each year, millions of students worldwide use the tutorials in classrooms and other venues to write their first lines of computer code. We selected this event for three reasons:
To introduce students to computer science To support development of logical and critical thinking skills To help close the digital divide; the race, class, and geography based inequities in knowledge of and access to information and communications technologies.
We were very pleased to offer the free event on a college campus, thanks to our partner, Arkansas Baptist College. This environment emphasized the importance of a college education and exposed students to a college campus. The Ife Opportunity Hour of Code introduced 45 people to computer coding in a multigenerational approach that drew students from 16 Central Arkansas schools.
Hour of Code Tutorials Ife Opportunity hosted the following Hour of Code sessions as part of International Computer Science Education Week:
December 6, Grades 2-5 o Introduction to coding with Angry Birds o Build a game with Tynker o Design a holiday card with Scratch December 13, Grades 6-8 o Introduction to coding with Angry Birds o Build a game with JavaScript o Be a disease detective with Python 1
Ife Opportunity: Creating Solutions. Expanding Opportunity. Promoting Equity
The sessions were advertised using the following methods: Facebook: www.facebook.com/ifeopportunity Twitter: www.twitter.com/IfeOpp Email mailing lists Flyers distributed by text and posted in the Sue Cowan Williams and Main Libraries in Little Rock (see appendix) Word of mouth These efforts resulted in 44 student registrations. Of those that registered, 24 students attended all of whom completed one to three coding tutorials. Every students had his or her own computer and families often sat together though they may not have completed the same tutorial. All participants (students and parents) received an Hour of Code certificate of completion and an Ife Opportunity bookmark. The bookmark, which listed coding education and resources for internet facilitated education and earning, emphasized the need to develop low tech skills like reading in addition to high tech skills like computer coding. (See appendix.) After the session, parents received a survey form so that they could easily provide feedback. Specific information is shown in Table 1 below. Date 12/6/14 12/13/14
Table 1: Ife Opportunity Hour of Code Participants Participating Grades Participating Students Participating Parents 2-5 19 11 6-8 6 2 TOTAL 24 (one attended twice) 13 Total participants including volunteers: 45
Demographics of the participating students are listed below:
87% had no prior experience with computer coding. 35% were girls, 65% were boys. 78% African American, 13% European American, 9% Hispanic American.
The event would not have been possible without eight adult volunteers to assist students with the tutorials. Volunteers were confirmed before the event and we shared the tutorials with them beforehand so that they would be familiar with them before the event. Most of the volunteers had little or no prior experience with computer coding and so are included in the total participants listed in Table 1.
Key Successes and Lessons Learned
We were very pleased and pleasantly surprised with the turnout particularly given that this was our first event. For future events we would send an additional reminder immediately after the student registers rather than waiting until three days before the event as we did this time. We were especially pleased that so many parents also participated in the coding sessions alongside their children. These kinds of two generation approaches are used in many educational and family development initiatives because impact is increased with multiple participants from multiple generations in the same household. 2
Ife Opportunity: Creating Solutions. Expanding Opportunity. Promoting Equity
We were gratified that our event attracted students from so many different schools and school districts. These are listed in Table 2 below:
Public Schools
Table 2: Ife Opportunity Hour of Code – Schools Represented Baker Elementary, Booker Arts Magnet, Brady Elementary, Crestwood Elementary, Paul Laurence Dunbar Magnet Middle, Ellen Smith Elementary, Forest Heights STEM Academy, Horace Mann Middle, Lakewood Middle, Martin Luther King Elementary, North Little Rock Academy, Williams Magnet Elementary eSTEM Middle, Little Rock Preparatory Academy
Charter Schools Private Johnson Montessori School Religious Episcopal Collegiate School Home Arkansas K-12 Virtual Academy School Total 17 schools attended by 24 students
We were inspired by the feedback provided by parents after the session. Responses included the following comments: o “Amazing experience. I was especially heartened by the turnout. My only hope is that it o o o o o
o
generates enough enthusiasm and momentum to turn this into a movement for our community!!” “Great fun and very educational” “I loved it and hope that the school my son attends has incorporated coding somehow into their computer classes. Thank you.” “This was a great event. Thanks for organizing and hosting.” “Great opportunity please continue this program!”
"Our 8 year old son had a fantastic time on Saturday. Although he was not familiar with coding before attending the class, by the end of the session he was comfortable enough with the concept of coding that he was able to explain and demonstrate to us what he was doing and why he was doing it! Each child had access to their own computer, and assistance was available if needed. The lab was abuzz with children discovering new found abilities, learning about patience and perseverance and the best sound of all - laughter. Overall this was a great experience! Thank you so much :)” “I think it was a great opportunity. Have more sessions!"
Future Activities With continued support from volunteers and other partners, particularly those who can provide computer lab space and financial assistance, we hope to offer similar Hour of Code sessions throughout Arkansas. In addition, because the tutorials are freely available, we hope to inspire others to offer similar sessions in their communities. To do so, we will offer Train the Trainer sessions for groups that would like to host an Hour of Code event in their community. Ife Opportunity is also pursuing additional initiatives that promote equity, including but not limited to: 3 Ife Opportunity: Creating Solutions. Expanding Opportunity. Promoting Equity
AR Free Library – A network of free library boxes located in communities with low income or educational attainment. The library boxes will be like those shown at www.littlefreelibrary.org. The Best of So what Can I Do - This e-book celebrates the tenth anniversary of So What Can I Do, the public service weblog promoting ethics in action. The activities listed promote equity and purchase supports Ife Opportunity. The e-book is available at https://payhip.com/b/YsJG.
Contact Information We are grateful to our volunteers and partners, including Arkansas Baptist College, for making the events possible, and we look forward to helping create equity for all Arkansans. For additional information about the Hour of Code or other Ife Opportunity activities, please contact Karama Neal, PhD, at 501/396-9591 or
[email protected].
Appendix Flyer design donated by Five Smooth Stones (http://fssworkinggroup.com/). Resources on the bookmark were focused on internet-facilitated education and earning, and access to the internet: code.org/learn codeacademy.org coursera.org edx.org khanacademy.org onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu udacity.com udemy.com Ebay.com sell elance.com linkedin.com odesk.com Internetessentials.com connect-arkansas.org (Computers 4 Kids)
4 Ife Opportunity: Creating Solutions. Expanding Opportunity. Promoting Equity
