In this interview with Sofía De Jesús, we discuss Sofía’s book (Applied Computational Thinking with Python: Design algorithmic solutions for complex and challenging real-world problems), the importance of bringing your full self into the classroom, designing for equity and inclusion, working with individuals one-on-one rather than teaching to group averages, problematizing grades in education, collaborating with educators, and much more.

Click here for this episode’s show notes.

How to Get Started with Computer Science Education

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00:00 Intro

00:51 Sofía introducing herself

02:13 Sofía's book

04:55 How Sofía got into computer science education

08:49 Two stories about education that continues to impact Sofía

12:36 Why students shouldn't compare themselves with others

19:26 What does this look like in the classroom?

25:17 How striving for equity informs pedagogy

30:29 Grades as an artificial sense of mastery

35:10 What questions do teachers have about not grading

37:39 Responding to people who want grades

43:19 How Sofía tries to iterate on her abilities as a CS educator

48:42 How Sofía tries to prevent burnout

53:36 What Sofía wishes there was more research on

56:43 The importance of collaboration in CS education

01:08:23 How to connect with Sofía

01:08:47 Outro