By Shashi

A few days ago James Abela (@eslweb) connected me to a WhatsApp group called SEACSTA – South East Asian Computer Science Teacher’s Association. This was a revelation in many ways since having been a member of the US based version of it (CSTA , @csteachersorg) it was refreshing to see a South Asian version of it. The group, created in 2016 by James, has 100+ members and just in the past two days I have spent there, I was able to get some good insights into some of the work that CS educators are doing from around the world. This short post is to document my questions and some of the responses I got (summarized) for them.

We are working at streamlining the conversations from the closed group into this website so please look for more on that soon!

Q1 : CS integration into other subjects has been a prime area of focus for me over the last few years. Hence, I wanted to know what schools are doing to integrate CS concepts into cross curricular areas. Here are the highlights.

1. Use of Arduinos, Microbit and LEGO in various classes.
2. Math classes using Microbits to write and solve problems.
3. Encryption Machine design to talk about a unit on conflict.
4. Using Scratch to simulate some of the Science experiments.
5. Logic Gates in Physics, AR tech in Biology, Binary and Hex division with math, 3D Art in Art, Computer Architecture in Design Tech Sequencing in Physical Education, Computing history in History, Digital divide in Geography.
6. Programming unit with Literacy classes.
7. Use of Construct 3 (Game Software) to create level games using verbs and adjectives.
8. Interactive posters using AR and HP Reveal.
9. Sonic Pi for music creation.

Q2. We moved to a new LMS/SIS combo in 2017 and have since worked hard at developing it into a central hub of all school and learning communication. One idea we have always wanted to explore is using it to create custom courses that students/staff (and even parents!) can take at their own pace. I wanted to know more about how schools use their LMS (Learning Management System)/ VLE (Virtual Learning Environment) to offer self-paced courses for staff/students who are interested in learning computing related topics.

1. WeLearn (https://welearn.org/#/) is trying to do something of this sort with K12 aligned courses one can sign up for.
2. Teachers have tried adding plenty of resources to the core curriculum and provide plenty of choices for students. Paperless models have also been successful.
3. The critical point of leadership having the right mindset for an initiative like this was brought up. Their support and vision goes a long way in implementing such projects.
4. Sustainability issues were identified – as in projects such as this should not wither once the people connected to them leave. Appropriate migration knowledge and culture of innovation legacy needs to transcend personalities.
5. Student voice and buy in played a big role in models that were successful. 
6. One teacher uses OneNote to link each of the IB CS units to resources that can be shared with anyone around the world.
7. Discussion on various LMS/VLE platforms were discussed using Moodle, One Note etc.
8. Getrocketbook.com was highlighted as a reusable notebook which can hold all kinds of notes, lists, doodles etc easily shared from paper mode to digital (via a simple Scan). 

Q3. Since the going was so great I thought of adding another question I had always wanted to ask in such a group – programming with drones! Since my current location has strict regulations around its usage, I was curious about which schools are using it and how. Some notes from that discussion.

1. Drone usage, unfortunately, is still highly regulated and restricted in many places.
2. Parrot drones with Tynker app are being used by a Middle School. 
3. Parrot drones using Linux interface (with Python) for older students being used.
4. Every drone bought needs to be licensed individually every 2 years and takes about 7 weeks for the process to complete. 
5. It was clear that not many people were invested in this but it still continues to fascinate me as a great teaching and learning tool (especially since it is a live data collection and analysis technology) so look forward to more resources and discussions involving this.

Believe it or not – this all happened within a 36 hour window! I look forward to connecting more in the group to learn and share.