Lachney_Entry+1

Where is Green Computing in K-12 Education?

Computer science education in K-12 is in its infancy. I do not mean to say that there has not been significant theorization (Papert 1980, 1993; Resnick 1994; deSessa 2001; Jenkins 2009) or empirical research (Cuban 1986; Margolis et al. 2008; Ito 2009) on computational thinking, computer use, literacies in k-12, but that CS (and engineering) education has not been standardized in K-12 state curricula like other STEM subjects - on through ACM's Computer Science Teacher Association

While some may frown at this current state of affairs, I believe that like the plasticity of the infant in the developmental sense, "infancy" of a pedagogical subjects signifies an opportunity to more easily mold and shape something in the early stages. These current developmental conditions suggest CS education as a point of intervention for social justice educators to support critical eco-pedagogies of sustainability and consumption (in addition to our EcoEd Literacy Goals, see Sandlin and McLaren eds. 2009). With this said, there is, in a brief Google search Green Computing K-12 initiatives, little that is easily accessible to K-12 educators. [|Wikipedia's entry under Green Computing lists a number of certification programs]in higher education. And, the website for [|Cornell's Institute for Computational Sustainability] includes pictures of community and K-12 science fair outreach, but does not provide any materials for repeating their activities.

references:

Cuban, Larry. //The Classroom Use of Technology Since 1920//. New York: Teachers College Press, Columbia University, 1986.

DiSessa, Andrea A. //Changing minds: Computers, learning and literacy//. The MIT Press, 2001.

Ito, Mizuko. //Engineering play: A cultural history of children's software//. The MIT Press, 2009.

Jenkins, Henry. //Confronting the challenges of participatory culture: Media education for the 21st century//. The MIT Press, 2009.

Margolis, Jane, Rachel Estrella, Joanna Goode, Jennifer Jellison Holme, and Kimberly Nao. "Stuck in the shallow end." (2008).

Papert, Seymour. "Children's Machines: Rethinking Education in the Age of the Computer." (1993).

Papert, Seymour. //Mindstorms: Children, computers, and powerful ideas//. Basic Books, Inc., 1980.

Resnick, Mitchel. //Turtles, termites, and traffic jams: Explorations in massively parallel microworlds//. Mit Press, 1994.

Sandlin, Jennifer A., and Peter McLaren, eds. //Critical Pedagogies of Consumption: Living and Learning in the Shadow of the" shopocalypse"//. Routledge, 2009.