Sounds like a great idea Phil, glad your crew is lending their support to this.<div><br></div><div>If you don't mind, I'll mention it at the ICTEV dinner tonight and suggest something similar. A bi-partisan position would lend you further support towards the goal of ICT education in Victoria.</div>
<div><div><br></div><div>Regards Roland<br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On 30 November 2011 14:39, PC <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:pcallil@me.com">pcallil@me.com</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex;">
Hi Steve,<br>
<br>
Thank you for this. The VITTA Committee of Management has a 2012 Planning<br>
Day meeting this weekend. Are you comfortable with the idea that I table<br>
the proposal as a draft for consideration? I'm sure the proposal will be<br>
one that will one that will promote valuable discussion both as Unit 5/6<br>
proposal but also of computational thinking in the earlier curriculum.<br>
<br>
Best wishes<br>
<br>
Phil<br>
<br>
<br>
Phil Callil<br>
President and Conference Director 2012<br>
Victorian IT Teachers Association (VITTA)<br>
Australia's largest IT in Education organization<br>
<a href="http://www.vitta.org.au" target="_blank">www.vitta.org.au</a><br>
<div class="HOEnZb"><div class="h5"><br>
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On 30/11/11 11:54 AM, "Steven Bird" <<a href="mailto:sb@csse.unimelb.edu.au">sb@csse.unimelb.edu.au</a>> wrote:<br>
<br>
>Dear workshop participants,<br>
><br>
>Thanks for making last week's CS4HS workshop a success! The<br>
>presentations and discussions were all really stimulating and<br>
>productive. As we reflected on the workshop today, we sensed a real<br>
>consensus amongst this group that the present state of affairs with IT<br>
>in the secondary curriculum is in need of renewal, and that we are on<br>
>the cusp of something quite new and exciting. There was unanimity in<br>
>wanting to inject the curriculum with rigorous computational content,<br>
>and we want to define challenging and meaningful standards for<br>
>computational thinking in which the curriculum itself is the driver,<br>
>rather than the technical prowess of particular teachers and students.<br>
><br>
>We think that the workshop format is a good one, and propose a<br>
>follow-up workshop early in first semester of 2012 to keep up the<br>
>momentum. In particular, we would like to explore the possibility of<br>
>a unit 5 and 6 study in Computer Science, and are starting to talk<br>
>with the VCAA senior management to seek their backing and lay out a<br>
>consultative process that could lead to a new secondary curriculum of<br>
>the kind we have been discussing.<br>
><br>
>The proposal for a new study at the 5/6 level is based on the<br>
>following considerations:<br>
><br>
>* The Minister of Education's announcement (today), that he has "asked<br>
>the VCAA to accelerate the development of a new VCE study that will<br>
>provide students with the opportunity to conduct independent extended<br>
>research and to work with our universities to investigate new forms of<br>
>extension studies for our brightest students", and his challenge that:<br>
>"ICT should be used to build the 21st century capabilities our<br>
>students will require -- to go beyond given information, to give<br>
>opportunities to use higher order thinking skills, real time analysis,<br>
>and predictive and modelling activities" (Victoria as a Learning<br>
>Community, State of Victoria 2011)<br>
><br>
>* The need to avoid the politics of the national curriculum including<br>
>uncertainties with the timeline (potentially 2016 before the<br>
>implementation of a senior secondary curriculum). We don't need to<br>
>wait and see, but instead we can work directly with VCAA, and develop<br>
>a 5/6 sequence starting now.<br>
><br>
>* The likely university-level interest in delivering Computer Science<br>
>content in the secondary curriculum, and displaying what kinds of<br>
>aptitudes are desirable for tertiary IT degrees. Done well, this<br>
>offers to boost numbers in those degrees at the earliest stage<br>
>possible, as opposed to innovations in the primary or junior secondary<br>
>curriculum, or waiting for the implementation of the Australian<br>
>Curriculum in this field. This also leaves the 3/4 IT Applications<br>
>subject in place, since it plays a valid role in helping students who<br>
>go into business degrees.<br>
><br>
>* The fact that Computer Science is a well-defined body of knowledge<br>
>(unlike Digital Technology, or Computational Thinking), and that<br>
>tertiary providers should be able to identify a semester of common<br>
>content across their degrees.<br>
><br>
>* The likely attractiveness of a 5/6 study in IT that offers<br>
>accelerated pathways at university, and which students could do<br>
>instead of an extra 3/4 study (e.g. one 3/4 study at year 11, three<br>
>3/4 studies and one 5/6 study at year 12).<br>
><br>
>* The opportunity for a 5/6 Computer Science study design to blaze a<br>
>trail, serving as a model for the later content of a corresponding 3/4<br>
>study. In particular, the opportunity to address the stark gender gap<br>
>by developing content that appeals to female students.<br>
><br>
>If this idea meets with approval, we would seek to run another<br>
>workshop early in first semester of 2012, focussing on this 5/6 study.<br>
><br>
>In addition to this, we don't want to lose sight of the need for new<br>
>input on computational thinking in the F-10 curriculum. Two of our<br>
>workshop participants will be at the ACARA meeting (National<br>
>Technologies Forum) in Sydney next Monday, strongly promoting the need<br>
>for computational thinking in the earlier curriculum. We would like<br>
>to wait and see what kind of traction this gets in ACARA, then<br>
>possibly run a workshop on computational thinking in the F-10<br>
>curriculum during second semester.<br>
><br>
>Such a workshop could call for contributions of modules at two agreed<br>
>levels (e.g. year 5 and year 9), designed to connect with the national<br>
>curriculum in English, Maths, History, and Science. In the workshop,<br>
>we would hope to go beyond static content to demonstrations of what<br>
>computational thinking actually looks like in the classroom.<br>
><br>
>These are our initial ideas about how to keep the ball rolling in<br>
>2012. Please let us have your thoughts.<br>
><br>
>Thanks,<br>
><br>
>-Steven & Paula<br>
><br>
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