ITiCSE 2008 Working Group

The Innovation and Technology in Computer Science Education conference (ITiCSE) is a SIGCSE conference that has been held annually since 1996. This conference brings together delegates from all over the world to address pressing issues in computing education. In addition to invited lectures, paper, panel, poster and “tips & techniques” sessions, the conference provides facilities and exposure for working groups of up to ten members, whose final reports may be published by SIGCSE.

In 2008, this Working Group met during the ITiCSE Conference in Madrid, Spain, and created the following report.

Reference

ALMSTRUM, V. L., APPLIN, E. G., OWENS, B. B., ADAMS, E., BARKER, L. J., IMPAGLIAZZO, J., JOSEPH, P. A., KAHLON, A., LAST, M. Z., LAWRENCE, A., AND YOUNG, A. 2008. Computing educators oral history project: seeking the trends. SIGCSE Bulletin inroads, 40(4). (Nov. 2008), 122-141. DOI = doi.acm.org/10.1145/1473195.1473238

Abstract

This report expands upon the work started by an ITiCSE 2005 Working Group, which established the groundwork for collecting and analyzing the oral histories of computing educators and provided a foundation for the Computing Educators Oral History Project (CEOHP). The main charge for the Working Group during ITiCSE 2008 was to begin analyzing the interviews already included in CEOHP. As part of the process of exploring analysis approaches, we revisited the status of CEOHP and what had been learned since 2005. We report on analytical procedures for using the interviews as research data and as the basis for informational, motivational resources. We describe techniques and software tools we investigated for qualitative (thematic) analysis of this rich set of personal histories. The analysis allowed themes to emerge naturally from the interviews and suggested specific areas for further investigation. The report describes plans, including procedural updates, archival options, web portal needs, legal and ethical issues, target groups, and publication targets. We conclude with a discussion of future challenges for CEOHP.

Working group members

The Working Group leaders were Vicki Almstrum and Barbara Boucher Owens.

Other Working Group members included Elizabeth Adams, Anne Applin, Lecia Barker, Alison Clear, John Impagliazzo, Patricia Joseph, Amardeep Kahlon, Mary Last, and Andrea Lawrence.