December 2007 — News
Print this articleClick here to receive your FREE subscription to T.H.E. Journal
Coding (and Consulting) Kid-style with Scratch
(To view the public projects developed by Randall's class for the adaptive technology, click here.)
Technical difficulties arose in using the sensor boards until the group realized that it needed to work with a later version of Scratch, said Randall. Once that problem was resolved, the kids struggled to figure out how to get the same switch to start and stop a project.
During the client demonstrations, she said, "My students were great, patient and understanding. Most of the Bridge View students need coaching to push switches and are learning that when they do, something happens on the computer screen. Chi spent most of his turn exploring the computer cables, much to my students' amusement."
One Bridge View student became overwhelmed by all the people and cried when her consultants tried to get her to use the program they'd created. "Not bothered at all, my students waited until she calmed down, then got her jolly again by trading hand fives," said Randall. Another "kept pushing the button over and over, to hear 'Good job, Chi!' in my students' voices."
In the end, said Randall, working with Scratch enabled her team of student consultants and programmers to experience the design process in a deeper way. "They made products that are real pieces of software, adapted to the needs of real clients. Usually what kids make doesn't feel as solid, and the Bridge View teacher pointed out this difference.... What Scratch did allow for was fairly professional-seeming, although simple, software that has a real use for her students--products she can't get from another source."
As Rawley, one student programmer, concluded, "The easy part was imagining what we wanted it to be. The hard part was the designing, programming, catching the bugs, and building the switch."
READ MORE FEATURES AND CASE STUDIES
About the author: Dian Schaffhauser covers high tech, business and higher education for a number of publications. Contact her at dian@dischaffhauser.com.
Proposals for articles and tips for news stories, as well as questions and comments about this publication, should be submitted to David Nagel, executive editor, at dnagel@1105media.com.
Cite this Site
copy text (above) for proper citation
