Bridging the Gap: Innovative Solutions for Finding Qualified Computer Science Teachers in Schools.
Ring Lardner Middle School found the perfect computer science teacher in their library media specialist.
Niles Community Schools partnered with South Bend Code School to bring computer science to its middle school students at Ring Lardner. Computer science can be a difficult subject to teach. With more states, school boards, and institutions requiring computer science concepts to be taught at younger and younger ages, finding the right curriculum, training educators, and delivering a comprehensive course that students enjoy, is difficult. We partnered with Niles Community Schools to help make this process easier by offering teacher training and curriculum.
“I had never coded before.” — Amy
Amy Gourlay, Ring Lardner Middle School’s library media specialist and, as of Fall 2020, is also the school’s computer science teacher. Amy originally joined Ring Lardner in 2016, and before her training with South Bend Code School, she had never coded before.
“I never once thought that I’d be able to do it. All I could see was this giant mountain in front of me! I know now that I underestimated myself. I’m still able to learn new things. And I can share that with the kids. I, too, didn’t know how to do this, but now I do. If I can learn how to do this, you can learn how to do this. And I tell the kids that every class, every week, every day.” – Amy
We provided training before the start of each school year, curriculum, and ongoing support each semester. We found that Amy is the perfect person to lead the coding program at Ring Lardner.
Being the librarian, she crosses paths with all students and can learn about their interests. Being a woman, Amy also offers another experience to the middle school students’ education and perception of computer science. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, women make up only 1/4 of technical jobs. Therefore, it is significant that students learn how to code from a woman coding instructor. This experience will help to broaden students’ perspectives of coders. Seeing a mirror image in their coding instructor can help to empower girls in the program and equip them with skills that will help them feel confident and inspired to navigate today's technology-driven world.
“Having support in something that you’re not entirely comfortable with doing makes all of the difference. I liked having the training, but that you also gave me the flexibility to tweak the lessons and materials how I wanted to. I like that I can do what works best for me, my students, and the school. What you’ve given me is so much more than I ever could’ve created from the beginning.” – Amy
The students are learning a lot from Amy. Students (6th — 8th) practiced creating digital programs using Scratch, a block-based coding language. They made projects like “Create Your Own Story,” a project where students animate characters to tell original narratives or repeat stories they’re familiar with.
At Ring Lardner, students receive coding as an elective. Offering the class as an elective gives students a designated time to develop this new skill set, and integrating classes into the school day helps make learning to code an equitable and accessible opportunity for all students ❤️.
South Bend Code School is an award-winning program founded in 2015 to combat the technology skills gap at the earliest level by reforming technology education and making learning skills in coding and computer science equitable. Since our inception, we have provided computer science education to over 1,300 students through after-school programs as well as program and school partnerships. For more information, email info@southbendcodeschool.com.
