Needs assessment for a coding teacher training program

Abstract

Mathstronauts is a non-profit organization in Hamilton that helps middle school students with STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) by giving them hands-on learning experiences. Since Ontario made coding a required part of the math curriculum for Grades 1 to 9 in 2020/21, Mathstronauts has noticed that many teachers from the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board (HWDSB) and the Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic District School Board (HWCDSB) are struggling to teach this new material. To address this, they want to create a training program for teachers to help them feel more confident teaching coding. To better understand what the ongoing challenges are for teachers in teaching the coding curriculum, the Research Shop conducted a needs assessment using a comprehensive survey and key-informant interviews. This report summarizes our findings, providing insights into challenges faced by teachers when teaching coding, as well as the unmet needs a coding training program could fill.