Computer science in english high schools: We lost the S, now the C is going

M. A.C. Clark*, R. D. Boyle

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference Proceeding (Non-Journal item)

11 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

High Schools in England began to teach computing long before the advent of the personal computer and the graphical user interface made it possible to teach aspects of information technology skills to non-specialists. We demonstrate that early high school computing was highly consistent with academic and professional practice. This consistency was eroded from the mid-1980s when the English school curriculum began to emphasise IT skills at the expense of computer science. We explain this development and argue that it helps to account for the growing difficulty in attracting students to university study in the discipline. Finally, we consider some current developments in the English high school curriculum, and reason that they raise concerns that they worsen prospects for the study of computer science.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationInformatics Education - The Bridge between Using and Understanding Computers - International Conference in Informatics in Secondary Schools - Evolution and Perspectives, ISSEP 2006, Proceedings
EditorsRoland Mittermeir
PublisherSpringer Nature
Pages83-93
Number of pages11
ISBN (Print)3540482180, 9783540482185
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2006
Externally publishedYes
Event1st International Conference in Informatics in Secondary Schools - Evolution and Perspectives, ISSEP 2006 - Vilnius, Lithuania
Duration: 07 Nov 200611 Nov 2006

Publication series

NameLecture Notes in Computer Science (including subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics)
Volume4226 LNCS
ISSN (Print)0302-9743
ISSN (Electronic)1611-3349

Conference

Conference1st International Conference in Informatics in Secondary Schools - Evolution and Perspectives, ISSEP 2006
Country/TerritoryLithuania
CityVilnius
Period07 Nov 200611 Nov 2006

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