Merging Coding and Geoscience to Engage Students

In addition to solid science skills as described in the Next Generation Science Standards, students also need practice with computational thinking skills to access, analyze, and visualize data. These are skills students need to be competitive in the work environment. Integrating computational thinking and basic coding into the classroom can help students to develop 21st century skills, diversify student learning, and demonstrate real world applications through project based learning.

As a multi-organizational team, Earth Science Information Partners (ESIP) Education committee members, education professionals from UNAVCO, NOAA, Cooperative Institute for Mesoscale Meteorological Studies, Concord Consortium and teachers from schools around the country have been exploring how to bridge basic coding to learn computational thinking and more complex coding skills within an Earth science context. Merging science and computational learning using NGSS and ITSE standards as guides, students develop skills paramount to be career- and college-ready. By encouraging teachers to learn how to code, we help them to encourage their students to be creators, more than just consumers, of the technology around us and to foster curiosity that whets their appetites to learn more!

This presentation will elaborate upon coding in the classroom initiatives these partners are facilitating from workshops, learning materials, and insights from workshop feedback.