Vint Cerf Sees Bootstrap As Part Of "A Wave Of The Future"
- Posted by Jesse Polhemus
- on April 16, 2018
Click the links that follow for more news about Bootstrap, Kathi Fisler, Shriram Krishnamurthi, and Emmanuel Schanzer.
"People learn at different speeds and use different methods to reinforce what they are learning," writes Vinton G. Cerf in the latest issue of Communications of the ACM. Looking for pedagogy that breaks with tradition, the Internet pioneer finds inspiration in Bootstrap, a K-12 CS curriculum used worldwide that's directed by Kathi Fisler, Shriram Krishnamurthi, and Emmanuel Schanzer of Brown CS. "What makes Bootstrap...so memorable for me," he writes, "is that the team has focused heavily on accessibility."
Intrigued by a coding demonstration that includes an audible depiction of the programmer's current status in the program, Cerf is reminded that a need for accessibility parallels the necessity of an educational approach that adapts to the learner: "What seems more important about the work at Bootstrap...is the potential to provide students closer to STEM learning with tools that move at the same pace at which the students can move."
"Designed for this kind of adaptability and flexibility," Cerf writes, Bootstrap is an example of self-paced learning with varying reinforcement methods. And the need for this new approach, he thinks, is real: "This sort of adaptable and convenient online learning is sure to be a part of 21st-century careers."
The full article is available here.
For more information, click the link that follows to contact Brown CS Communication Outreach Specialist Jesse C. Polhemus.