Fall 2018 marked some exciting new changes for the Code Savvy Educators program!

MN Codes Professional Trainers Initiative

We launched a new MNCodes Professional Trainers initiative to match the expertise of our MNCodes Cohort alumni with schools and districts who are looking to start or strengthen their K-12 computer science learning offerings through customized, on-site professional development for their educators. Our workshops are hands-on and focus on innovative ways to incorporate computer science and computational thinking into any K-12 subject area or after school programs. We share innovative strategies and equity-focused approaches to developing learning opportunities that empower students to see themselves as creators of new technologies.

Here’s a link to a flyer with some additional information, including some examples of sessions we have provided. It’s been so wonderful to partner with schools and districts across MN to expand their computer science learning opportunities!

Coding in the Classroom Leadership Cohort

In August, we welcomed a new group of amazing K-12 MN educators as part of our 4th annual MN Coding in the Classroom Leadership Cohort!

Our Cohort is a one-of-a-kind ongoing professional development opportunity for Minnesota K-12 educators who meet monthly to explore, collaborate on and share information about computer science (CS) education while developing equity-focused resources for integrating computational thinking (CT) and CS across curricular areas and providing training for other educators in each participant’s unique geographic location.

The purpose of the MN Coding in the Classroom Leadership Cohort is to empower a network of visionary K-12 educators with knowledge and resources in CS education so that we can help all students become creators, not merely users, of new technologies.

Through the efforts of our first three annual Cohort groups and their participants, we estimate that we have partnered with over 70 Minnesota school districts, and have reached over 20,000 students and 2,000 educators. We have seen measurable impact and success through this initiative and are planning to continue to expand our efforts, especially in the following areas:

Increasing participants’ understanding of rationales and implementation strategies/pedagogies for engaging underrepresented populations in CT/CS
Increasing confidence in integrating and sustaining CT/CS within participants’ educational contexts, schools, and classrooms through connection to a growing network of computer science educators and the launch of a public online resource library that includes curricular and training resources developed by current and past Cohort members
Increasing access to equipment, tools, site visits and guest speakers in order to enhance participants’ understanding and ability to teach computational thinking and computer science

Making Minnesota a leader in CS Education

We are looking forward to opportunities to connect with other educators interested in computer science education!

We will be at the TIES Conference on Monday, 12/10 to facilitate an MNCodes Networking and Round Table Discussion in an effort to connect new and existing computer science educators from across our state.

We are also looking forward to our 4th annual MNCodes Summit on Thursday, May 16th! The MNCodes Summit is a day-long professional development opportunity designed to provide a space for educators to share their knowledge, passion, and resources around computer science in education through hands-on and interactive sessions, as well as to advocate for the integration of computer science across content areas as a way to build important, lifelong skills for all students.

Our goal is to draw educators, administrators, community education staff, lawmakers, and other stakeholders to join in our vision of making Minnesota a leader in computer science education!

Did you know…

There is currently ZERO state funding offered in Minnesota for computer science professional development for educators. And with 13,477 open computing jobs in Minnesota but only 895 CS graduates, developing rock-solid, well-prepared educators is more important now than ever before.