Port Richmond School for Visionary Learning

Why Port Richmond School for Visionary Learning was nominated

At PS 68, computational thinking is emphasized within classroom instruction to build student agency and promote their usage of critical thinking skills for problem solving. A school-based computational thinking integrationist team was created last year consisting of educators including subject specific teachers, classroom teachers and an instructional coach to support the school wide adoption of computational thinking practices to ensure that all students K-5 have exposure to computational thinking across all their disciplines. With a whole child orientation, PS 68 also brings families into the work of computational thinking integration across all learning environments. This work of bringing parents and families into the schoolwide emphasis on computational thinking started last year with introductions to computational thinking within contexts such as planting a seed to grow a flower and creating a photo frame. This fall the school hosted a parent showcase event to provide families with another opportunity to learn more about how their students are using computational thinking to help with problem solving. This event was led by teachers with special school responsibilities in STEM/Computer Science, Theater and Physical Education. A key component of effective computational thinking integration is the use of the common language around the four problem-solving strategies. Through the ongoing education of parents and families about computational thinking, the school is strengthening the use of computational thinking terms and applications from school to home, thus further supporting students’ adoption of these strategies. We believe that this is a particularly innovative approach to parent/family engagement around workforce skill development.