Resource selected:
Computational Thinking For Problem Solving (
Link: https://learndigital.withgoogle.com/digitalskills/course/computational-thinking-problem-solving
I selected this course as a resource because it will strengthen my problem solving skills to teach my students another approach how to develop and analyze algorithms which is always a difficult topic for most of our upper high school students. The course will expose me to a community of analytical thinkers where I can further develop my role as a digital educational leader to make a positive social impact through computational thinking.
By using Berkeley's guide to evaluate the resource framework, I have looked at the following aspects of the course:
Authority: This resource was designed and developed by University of Pennsylvania, an Ivy League university, with instructor, Susan Davidson who has a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from Princeton University . The training is certified for professional development and the source is credible
Purpose: the course is designed for anyone at a beginner level that has interest in developing and analyzing algorithms and put it in Python code.
Publication & format: this resource is available as an open-source at Coursera with a certification of an electronic course certificate upon completion of the 4 modules. There is unlimited access, pre-recorded videos, projects and assessments to test knowledge and understanding.
Relevance: Part of the Information Technology course syllabus at our school covers programming of which one of the first module is problem solving and algorithms where the students are introduced to the concepts of programming problem solving and developing algorithms that will be later transferred to code in a programming language. Further certification and training in programming will directly benefit our students when learning this topic. In a digital world, our country needs as many students as possible to embark on a career of software development which this course will contribute towards accomplishing.
Date of publication: current
Documentation: The modules, practical exercises, and projects allows the student to apply the knowledge learnt. There is no textbook or source cited in their pre-recorded videos. They do give a background reading on "Computational Thinking" from J.M. Wong (2006) who was the Head of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University.
Conclusion: I have enrolled in the course and after reviewing the modules I have determined that it is a course that would be beneficial to myself as an I.T. teacher for professional development and other I.T. teachers at our school as we prepare our upper form students for programming and doing the external regional exams in I.T.