<div dir="ltr"><a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/22/upshot/making-computer-science-more-inviting-a-look-at-what-works.html" target="_blank">http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/22/upshot/making-computer-science-more-inviting-a-look-at-what-works.html</a><br><div><br></div><div>Might be interesting to collate some of these initiatives. I sense a huge amount of replication, but at the same time the problem remains.</div><div><br></div><div>As anecdata, the correlation between TV programs/films and student career aspirations is worth a look. Popular TV show about lawyers -> increase in student interest in a career which previously was seen as incredibly boring. The CSI series resulted in increases in students wanting to do forensic science ( and I even had one complain that their study required them to "do all this legal stuff" - apparently the nature of forensic science had never occurred to them). This phenomenon first came to my attention when a very young Kylie Minogue played a female mechanic in a well-known TV program and resulted in a spike in women training as mechanics, and has been repeated over and over again. </div><div><br></div><div>But how is computing portrayed in the media? In most cases, as a nerdy, isolated profession where social interaction is shunned. Maybe that portrayal is changing but it is one of many factors acting against the computing industry/profession.</div><div><br></div><div>While I'm about it, the Australian Computer Society has a set of YT videos about <br><br>Women in IT <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8BUtM6njqLuWFp7jdTgpJMZadK3PP0sf" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8BUtM6njqLuWFp7jdTgpJMZadK3PP0sf</a> and <br>Careers in IT <br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVUShuGdUYl4eQCRQG7H7zOLxBoZf5e2Q">https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLVUShuGdUYl4eQCRQG7H7zOLxBoZf5e2Q</a> <br></div><div><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGCrKCxj-kQ&list=PLVUShuGdUYl4rnk0ZdkKU2VW8rp9rg_XF">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGCrKCxj-kQ&list=PLVUShuGdUYl4rnk0ZdkKU2VW8rp9rg_XF</a><br></div><div><a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL42BE27FF3884ADAE">https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL42BE27FF3884ADAE</a><br></div><div><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wi9azHqU9RY&list=PLE4F9B3EE57D97A10">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wi9azHqU9RY&list=PLE4F9B3EE57D97A10</a><br><br></div><div>These are Australian videos and the content is reasonably current. Some of them might be useful at careers evenings, enrolment day, or for your own classes. They might give some students a reason or idea about the value of studying computing.<br><br><br></div></div><div class="gmail_extra"><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Wed, May 27, 2015 at 11:09 PM, Tracey Hubert <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:traceyhubert@gmail.com" target="_blank">traceyhubert@gmail.com</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex"><div dir="ltr">Hello,<div><br></div><div>I am a pre-service IT teacher and long-time lurker. I am working on an assessment investigating issues and debates around the implementation of the (proposed) Digital Technologies curriculum and the implications for schools and teachers. In the Donnely and Whiltsire review, they propose that IT remain a general capability and the standalone subject be scrapped or made optional. One of the arguments is there are not enough suitably qualified teachers and that it can be taught across the disciplines. They obviously miss the point that ITC != computational thinking.</div><div><br></div><div>I am curious to hear what practicing IT teachers think about this assertion. I went to a school tour on Friday and was surprised to learn they didn't offer IT as a subject at all, not even in VCE. No electives in Year 9. Nothing. I had a look at the overall statistics for VCE IT apps and VCE Software Development and saw enrolments are significantly down from their 2000–2001 peak. During the online PD for the new VCE subjects, Paula Christophersen mentioned they have increased this year by 10%, but it still seems quite low given the ubiquity of tech and the push for STEM subjects in general. </div><div><br></div><div>I was wondering if anyone has any insight as to why they think the numbers have dropped in they way they have. It can't only be explained by the scaling down, can it?</div><div><br></div><div>TIA</div><span class="HOEnZb"><font color="#888888"><div>Tracey</div></font></span></div>
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