The Role of Special Education Teachers in Promoting Access to Computer Science Education: BrowardCODES-for-All

• In Event: Understanding and Supporting District Systems Change Around Computer Science Education

Abstract

This study aims to understand the role that special education teachers play in the district-wide inclusion of students with disabilities in K-12 CS education. This lack of attention to students with disabilities has resulted in barriers to participation including limited or no CS professional development for special education teachers, and limited advocacy for the inclusion of students with disabilities in CS education. Thus, limited opportunity, not disability, often prevents students from succeeding in CS education. These barriers exist despite studies showcasing that students with disabilities can succeed in CS education (e.g., Bergstahler, et al., 2012; Israel et al., 2018).
Through a Research-Practice-Partnership (RPP; Coburn et al., 2013), we developed the BrowardCODES for All--Inclusion in Computer Science program. Our initial step towards wider inclusion focused on PD for special education teachers. We recruited a cohort of special education teachers from eleven instructional settings for our pilot study (2019-2020) and utilized a design-based implementation research (DBIR) approach (Penuel, et al., 2011) to design and implement both face-to-face and virtual PD, leveraging synchronous and asynchronous learning. This PD had to acknowledge that students with disabilities are not homogenous, so there could not be a single approach to inclusive practices. Additionally, special education teachers have multiple roles across inclusive and self-contained instructional settings, and these teachers work directly with students with disabilities, co-teach, manage paraeducators, co-plan, suggest accommodations and modifications, and advocate for the inclusion of students with disabilities in CS education. Research questions driving this study were: (1) What resources do special education teachers need to provide CS education to students with disabilities? and (2) What features of professional development empower teachers to provide meaningful CS education experiences to students with disabilities?
The main foci of PD included: (1) building inclusive and accessible CS instruction based on the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) framework (CAST, 2011), (2) individualizing for students with more significant needs, and (3) exploration of accessibility features within available CS software and hardware. Additionally, significant time was also devoted to addressing barriers to inclusion as well as celebrating and documenting classroom successes. Pilot study findings suggested that special education teachers were eager to learn about CS education and want to bring CS districtwide to all learners. In their initial classroom implementation, they noted multiple successes as well as barriers. Finally, their priorities included: (1) having accessible hardware (e.g., robots, computer mice, assistive technology) and software (e.g., text to speech), (2) meeting students Individual Education Program (IEP) goals through CS education (e.g., working on social skills while collaboratively programming, addressing literacy goals through CS activities), and (3) using effective pedagogical approaches to meet the needs of all their learners (e.g., UDL, individualization), and (4) gaining experience with CS education hardware and software to the point that they can implement them in their teaching.

Authors

• Maya Israel, University of Florida

• Wei Yan, University of Florida