UA Professor Leads Statewide Effort to Teach Computer Science in Elementary Schools

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Dr. Jeff Gray, professor of computer science at The University of Alabama, will lead a series of workshops around Alabama that introduces computer science to elementary-school classrooms.

The workshops are sponsored by Code.org, a non-profit that aims to introduce computer science education in secondary and primary schools.

Gray is scheduled to lead nine workshops in Alabama between Dec. 5 and Feb. 4, introducing computer science to more than 275 elementary-school teachers. He expects to lead about 20 workshops in the state over the next year, with a goal of training more than 500 Alabama teachers.

By blending online and self-guided tutorials that integrate with other parts of the curriculum in kindergarten through fifth grade, the courses can be tailored to meet the needs of students at various ages. Each level consists of about 20 lessons teachers may implement as one unit over the course of a semester or adapt to their class based on their students’ progress.

Code.org supports each workshop and provides each teacher with a 200-page textbook, free professional development, online resources for their class and a “swag bag.”

So far, Gray is scheduled to lead workshops at the following locations:

Dec. 5: Mountain Brook, Crestline Elementary

Dec. 8: Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa Career and Technology Academy

Dec. 11: Pelham, Valley Intermediate School

Dec. 12: Pelham, Valley Intermediate School

Jan. 9: Selma, Dallas County Resource Center

Jan. 12: Jacksonville, Jacksonville High School

Jan. 26: Hoover, Hoover City Schools

Jan. 28: Madison, Heritage Elementary School

Jan. 29: Huntsville, The University of Alabama in Huntsville

Jan. 30: Decatur, Leon Sheffield Elementary School

Feb. 4: Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa Career and Technology Academy

Feb. 16: Tuscaloosa, American Christian Academy

Feb. 23, Auburn, Yarbrough Elementary School

Gray is planning and scheduling more workshops in other areas of the state in the spring.

Gray is a national leader in computer science education, and he is a member of Code.org’s Education Advisory Council.

With several National Science Foundation grants, Gray has worked with the College Board and NSF as a pilot instructor to craft a new Advanced Placement computer-science course designed to increase secondary and post-secondary educational interest in computer science and improve collegiate preparation for STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) awareness.

Since summer 2014, Gray has offered an online course called Massive, Open, Online Course, or MOOC, that is supported by Google. The course has trained more than 1,000 high-school teachers nationwide on the new AP exam.

He also works to train 50 high-school teachers to integrate computer science into technology courses and teach the upcoming new AP computer science course. He hosts an annual Alabama Robotics Competition for grades K-12, along with summer computer camps for similarly aged students.

Founding donors for Code.org include Microsoft chairman Bill Gates and Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg, among a host of high-profile technology industry partners such as Google, Microsoft and Amazon. Code.org’s founder is technology entrepreneur and investor Hadi Partovi.

In addition to incorporating computer science into the core curriculum in grades kindergarten through 12^th grade, Code.org also seeks to increase representation of female students and those from underrepresented minority populations.