Making of Computer Masti :Content creation for an innovative Textbook

IIT Bombay

Project chronology : Jan-Mar 07

Literature survey of existing Computer curriculum for schools both in India and abroad

CBSE ICSE State boards NCERT framework US public schools Stanford university’s recommended

curriculum Australia ACM curriculum

Jan-Mar 07………contd

Survey of textbooks available in India for teaching computers in schools

10 publishers survey[ Navneet, Frank bros, Oxford, Rachnasagar, Orient Longman, ILFS ….]

Comparative study of topics covered from one to ten standards

Jan-Mar 07………contd Framing of CS curriculum

Release of Computer Science Curriculum for Schools: March 2007

Team:Co-ordinatorSyllabus authorSyllabus reviewer [ Teachers and IITB

faculty]Lesson material contributorsLesson material reviewers

Snapshot of Lesson creation template

Snapshot of lesson review form

Summary of topics

Focus at different levels● Primary Section (1st to 4th) – Get the children to be familiar with the computer

andthat it has many interesting uses. Introduce the capabilities of a standalone computerwithout doing any programming. Emphasis on just providing exposure to basic skills.Some elementary social aspects and the concept of logical, step-wise, thinking.

• Middle Section (5th to 7th) – Get the children to learn how to control the computer.Skilled use of a standalone computer, including configuration-level programming(change settings and customize applications). Introduce the power of Internetapplications (email and search). Emphasis on social aspects – keeping oneself safeand ethical usage. Introduce an elementary programming language. Introducegeneral concepts behind some of the skills learnt, such as algorithms etc.

• Secondary Section (8th to 10th) – Full fledged control of the standalone system and

skilled navigation of the networked world. Emphasis on learning concepts of broadapplicability. Other topics of the syllabus, including using a programming language,as stipulated for the Board examination.

• Higher Secondary Section (11th to 12th) – Mostly follow the syllabus given for theBoard examination. Highlight the underlying concepts, without over-doing it.

Sample of What, Why, How 1ST STANDARDWhat: At the end of 1st Std, a child should know:• Concepts: Regard the computer as a machine with various parts and associatedfunctions (that can be controlled/directed).• Usage Skills: Identify all the parts of a computer; use keyboard (arrow enter/return keys)and mouse (single/double click) as input devices; open applications, such as Music,Paint, or Games and their rudimentary use.• Social Aspects: Maintaining cleanliness; dust-free area; not spilling food etc; orderlinessin handling peripherals and sharing resources.

Why: At the end of 1st Std, it is enough for a child to be able to relate to a computer as aninteresting entity with various parts and functions (Existence Awareness). More topics arenot required because the goal is to simply introduce the computer as a tool for doing othertasks. Since it can be a highly distracting toy, the content is deliberately low-key. However,fewer topics are not desirable because the child should not get left behind in terms of his/herpeers or get overwhelmed at a later age.

How: There should be one class per week, roughly as per the following schedule:

Snapshot of week wise curriculum

Project chronology : Mar 07-May07

Creation of handbooks and associated worksheets collaboratively

Team of ten people allotted lessons content, worksheets.

Content created ,uploaded on wiki

Project Chronology Jun07 – Jun08

Handbook format extended to textbooks

Textbook content contextualised Introduction of characters for the

lessons Lesson in the form of dialog

between characters and a tutor character

Jun07 – Jun08 ……….contd Lesson aimed at both teachers and

parents with many illustrations Lesson starts with aim of lesson Vocabulary restricted to age of child Help provided to teacher as teacher’s

corner Worksheets integrated with lessons Activities/group activities introduced for

team building Projects introduced as the last lesson

covering all the lessons of a grade

Jun07 – Jun08 ……….contd

External resources provided for further learning

Explore tasks given which are not covered in the lesson

Concepts and skills formulated for each lesson

Lesson outcome summarised in the end

Sample lesson shots

June 2008

Computer Masti Book I released under creative commoms

Available for download on the website

Statistics : Worldwide downloads of: 430 across countries

Book used in Mumbai SSRVM school and field study conducted

Field insights Elementary school students are avid learners and explorethe various computer applications with minimal assistance• Computer-based activities interest the students and can

beused for developing skills in other subjects.• Collaborative learning enabled students to proactivelyexplore various applications.• No gender differences are observed in computer

proficiencyand usage, likely reason - controlled exposure in the schoolsetting ensures equal opportunity to use the technology.• Confidence of teacher with the technology has a positiveimpact on confidence of students.

Nov 2008

Release of Computer Mast Book II Downloads: 196 Field study extended in the

Mumbai school with Book II

June 2009

Release of Computer Masti III Downloads: 40 Implementation in schools

outsourced to Vendor – Intux pvt Ltd.

Vendor has MOU with schools to conduct training, set up labs, teach CM

August 2009

Computer Masti IV : Completed, will be released shortly……….

End of Project Chronology slides

I - CM specific Model

Motivation How was CM created? Different roles of people involved Child specific decisions while creating

content Why does the model work Can it be replicated for other

subjects?

One more textbook for teaching Computers in Schools?

Study of existing curriculum led to development of new curriculum to bridge the gap and move towards FOSS

Computer Masti [CM] textbook was a result of the content generated for the new curriculum

Some questions……

Is it necessary to teach computer science in schools ?

If so, at what age do we start? What do we teach them? How do we teach them? Will it be fun? How will it help them in the future , if

they become artists, fashion designers, and musicians and not scientists?

Some more questions……

Can we also teach other subjects using computers?

Can we get the trained personnel for teaching?

Is it too distracting? Is it safe? Do you need specific skills to learn this

subject? Is teaching computers at school a very

expensive proposition?

The above questions led to…..

Motivation for this project Study of existing curriculum across

boards/textbooks Our philosophy of concept/skill based

learning Curriculum and Content development Implementation on the field Extensions in the future

Motivation Students already have access to PCs Self-learning in trial and error mode There is no structured training at primary

school They may end up using PCs only for

entertainment It is very critical that they learn the right

wayChildren can have fun while learningWe have fun in designing the curriculum

Study existing curriculum/textbooks

Varied curriculum across boards Different entry levels [ KG, III] No prescribed syllabus Mostly tied to Microsoft proprietary software Only skill based teaching CS is not a board paper [ elective ] Textbooks generally cover one application every

year Not enough illustrations Design a curriculum to overcome the above

constraints

Our Philosophy What, why ,when, how? OS platform Ubuntu Generic concepts which are platform

independent: start up , shut down… CS concepts : Step wise thinking,

reasoning… Application Skills Values interspersed with lessons Child friendly language Open source contents: Creative Commons

Curriculum/content development

Curriculum designed based on insights of study

Expert feedback from CS faculty / teachers

Improvisation of curriculum Team of contributors from diverse

backgrounds Collaborative work across geographic

locations Guidance about the scope of the topic to

be covered

Curriculum/content development…

Handbooks for teachers developed Content adapted to textbook format Textbook lesson components

Aim Lesson content Lesson outcome Worksheets Activities Explore Teacher’s corner Further reading Projects

Contributors for content

Underlying content created – Author Contextual conversation added to the content

– Creative writer Worksheets and activities designed : Social

sciences expert along with subject expert Teachers corner [ Tips for how to teach

students]: Social sciences expert Illustrations added – Illustrator Entire lesson design and layout – Graphic

designer Content final editing – Editor Entire process coordination – Managing Editor

Content contributors’ academic background

The diverse academic background of the contributors has helped in creating and fine-tuning the content

Computer science Faculty Engineers Social scientists Fine arts experts Illustrators and animation experts Language experts Teachers Graphic designers

Key challenges during content creation

For the Author Decide the scope of the content for the

particular age Study existing content for the topic and

have the clarity about what is the differentiator /value add for the content they are creating

Clearly come up with Concepts and skills that can be introduced in the content

For the creative writer Most challenging role Build contextual conversations around the

topic to be covered Conversation should not override the actual

topic Intersperse the lesson with real life examples

which children can relate to Enumerate the concepts and skills Come up with content which comes to life with

illustrations Reiterate concepts learnt in earlier lessons Be gender sensitive while creating content

Social science Expert Create worksheets and activities which are

age specific Check that the concepts and skills in the

lesson are covered in the worksheets Ensure the language used is child friendly List the questions that can be asked while

teaching Envisage the possible responses of students

and guide the teacher Create group activities to foster team

building Think of tasks for children to explore which

are not covered in the lesson

For the Illustrator The illustration should be self explanatory ,should

be used even if text is translated Illustrations to be gender sensitive Child should be able to relate to characters used Incorporate cheerful expressions of characters

used so as to appeal to the child Come up with suggestions as to what illustration

for a particular activity/question will make it interesting for the child

Choose the appropriate colurs for the illustrations

For the Designer Create design templates for all the

lesson components [ lesson ,worksheet, activity….]

Design a layout that is attractive and motivates a child

Highlight technical words and keywords in subtle way

Use a mix of text and illustrations interspersed such that the content page is not cluttered.

For the Editor Check the flow of the entire lesson Add/delete new concepts or skills Change the scope of the content If there are too many new concepts

introduced , move them to the next level

For the Managing Editor Ensure seamless integration of all

activities [eg: lesson -> worksheets-> Activities-

>illustrations] Collaborative project management Ensure feedback and iteration after

each activity Set individual and group deadlines

Why did this model work for CM?

All the team members are passionate about education

Team belonging to all age groups bringing in varied insights [ 50 yrs to 20 yrs ]

Entire activity was primarily voluntary and self driven

Ownership , accountability without possessiveness

Active group discussion and decision making Main motivation from IIT faculty member Eventually benefit the next generation of kids

[ after large scale dissemination ]

II- Generic ,collaborative content generation model for creation of textbooks

The three main phases are:1. Pre-processing phase 2. Processing phase 3. Post-processing phase

1. Pre-processing phase

Study the need for a textbook in the particular domain/subject Decide the target audience [ students/ professionals]

Decide the age group of target audience Literature survey of existing

textbooks and curriculum followed for that subject Comparative study and gap analysis

1. Pre-processing phase ……..contd

Propose curriculum Fine-grain level Focus on concepts to be taught List out skills to be taught Enumerate what , why ,how a

particular topic has to be taught

2. Processing phase

Look for people to fit into essential roles [ single person may perform multiple roles]

Overall editor – Content signoff Managing Editor – Tracking of processes and timelines Content author – Scope of content to be covered Contextual author- Create the context around the topic Teaching author – pedagogical aspects, conduct studies Designer – Layout of the book Illustrator – Illustrations for the textbook

2. Processing phase……contd

Apply iterative process for each step in content creation [ link to diagram ]

Closure , Final Editing Print ready version created in pdf Printed

3. Post processing – Lab to school/outside world Release in Creative commons- Increase visibility Track analytics to check downloads Set up a mechanism to get feedback from users Find implementation partner

to actually take it to the target audience Conduct training programs

Set up a collaboration and revenue sharing model arrangement

Translation and customization of content based on requirement

Open up other channels like e-book, content on mobile , content based comic strips, etc…

How can others take part?

All the tasks and activities are maintained in a collaborative work space

Individuals can sign up for any specific activity and contribute [ creation, review…]

This contribution is across geographic borders

Thank you