Submitted by Rachel Gardner on Thu, 22/07/2021 - 10:26
We are pleased to announce the creation of a new Computing Education Research Centre here in the University of Cambridge Department of Computer Science and Technology.
The new Centre is a joint initiative between the Raspberry Pi Foundation and the University of Cambridge and builds on Raspberry Pi’s long standing partnership with this Department. That partnership goes all the way back to 2008, to the creation of the Raspberry Pi Foundation and the invention of the Raspberry Pi computer.
More recently, Raspberry Pi and this Department have collaborated on developing Isaac Computer Science, an online platform already in use by 2000 teachers and 18,000 students of A level Computer Science in England, and will soon be expanded to cover GCSE content.
"With computers and digital technologies increasingly shaping all of our lives, it’s more important than ever that every young person, whatever their background or circumstances, has meaningful opportunities to learn about how computers work and how to create with them."
Philip Colligan, Raspberry Pi Foundation
In a blog post today, Raspberry Pi Foundation CEO Philip Colligan says: "I am delighted to announce the creation of the Raspberry Pi Computing Education Research Centre at the University of Cambridge.
"With computers and digital technologies increasingly shaping all of our lives, it’s more important than ever that every young person, whatever their background or circumstances, has meaningful opportunities to learn about how computers work and how to create with them.
"Through the Raspberry Pi Computing Education Research Centre, we want to increase understanding of what works in teaching and learning computing, with a particular focus on young people who come from backgrounds that are traditionally underrepresented in the field of computing or who experience educational disadvantage.
"The Research Centre will combine expertise from both institutions, undertaking rigorous original research and working directly with teachers and other educators to translate that research into practice and effect positive change in young peoples’ lives.
Professor Alastair Beresford (top right), who co-leads on the development of the Isaac Computer Science project together with Professor Andy Rice (bottom right), says: "I’m delighted to see the creation of the Raspberry Pi Computing Education Research Centre. It builds on our existing strong links with Raspberry Pi and will allow for the expansion of our research into ways of improving the teaching of computing and computer science."
The centre will research computing education for school-aged children. The research will focus on:
- Computing curricula, pedagogy, and assessment, including teacher professional development and the learning and teaching process
- The role of non-formal learning in computing and digital making learning, including self-directed learning and extra-curricular programmes
- Understanding and removing the barriers to computing education, including the factors that stand in the way of young people's engagement and progression in computing education.
As well as research projects here, the centre will also look for collaborations with researchers overseas, including in the USA and India.
