A Translanguaging Approach to Computing Education: Language, Justice, CS and YOU

Overview

As CS for All rolls out across the country, educators want to know: How can I equitably teach bi/multilingual learners -- students who speak more than one language and who are learning English at school?  In this series of activities and workshops, attendees will grapple with theories that disrupt the political and social structures that create challenges for bi/multilingual learners to help them notice and value how bi/multilingual learners use language and communicate in the CS classroom.

In Level 1, participants reflect on their own experiences with systems of oppression around language that have traditionally constrained bi/multilingual learners’ participation in CS classrooms.

In Level 2 attendees will make connections to the classroom, developing a stance that values their students' diverse language practices and learn an approach to designing and/or modifying CS units that invites and guides teachers to embed code and CS into conversations that their students -- bi/multilingual and otherwise – are already having.

In Levels 3 and 4 - they will consider how these theories and approaches shape their advocacy work to support building and system-wide change.

Where these ideas come from

Participating in Literacies and Computer Science (Pila-CS) is a Research Practice Partnership between New York City schools and researchers at University at Buffalo, New York University and the City University of New York to support bi/multilingual kids participating in the CS for All initiative in NYC.