Marina Umaschi，贝尔斯—former 椅子 of the Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study and Human Development at Tufts University and widely recognized for her work on computational thinking, 机器人, and technological tools for children to learn computer programming—has joined the Lynch School of 教育 and Human Development as the Augustus Long Professor, 查尔斯·F. 多诺万院长斯坦顿E.F. 沃瑟姆宣布.
欢迎她来不列颠哥伦比亚省, the Lynch School will host a presentation by 伯斯 on Thursday, 9月15日, at which she will present an overview of her work, using the metaphor of playgrounds versus playpens to understand the role of technology in children’s lives. The lecture, which will take place in at Higgins Hall Room 300 at 7 p.m. and be followed by a reception, will cover ideas from her recent book, Beyond Coding: How Children Learn Human Values through Programming, in which she argues that coding should be taught not only as a technical skill but as a new literacy—a new way for children to express themselves and engage with the world and others.
“We are thrilled to have Marina 伯斯 join our faculty,沃瑟姆说。, who noted that she will also have a courtesy appointment in BC’s Computer Science Department. “Her work touches tens of thousands of children in dozens of countries around the world, and the technological skills that she focuses on are increasingly important today. Her emphasis on learning as a whole person process, one that involves the development of ethical dispositions as well as technical knowledge, fits wonderfully with the BC and Lynch School mission.”
伯斯, 阿根廷人, is a pioneer in the field of early childhood technology, with projects of national and international visibility. She is widely recognized for co-creating the free ScratchJr programming language, 全世界有超过3500万儿童使用, 也是KIBO机器人套件的发明者, which helps children learn how to code without screens or keyboards by using wooden blocks. She also serves as content director for the upcoming “Work It Out Wombats!” PBS animation series focused on computational thinking for preschoolers, 明年哪个节目会在全国播出.
塔夫茨, she established and served as director of the graduate certificate program on Early Childhood Technology, and held a secondary appointment in the Computer Science Department. In 2001 she created the interdisciplinary Developmental Technologies (DevTech) research group, 她要传达给林奇学校吗.
Passionate about tapping the power of expressive technologies to promote learning in young children, 她是六本书的作者, 包括 Coding as Playground: Programming and Computational Thinking in the Early Childhood Classroom; Teaching Computational Thinking and Coding to Young Children (which she edited with contributions from the DevTech research team); The Official ScratchJr Book: Help Your Kids Learn to Code (与米切尔·雷斯尼克合作); 设计数字 Experiences for Positive Youth Development: From Playpen to Playground; and Blocks to Robots: Learning with Technology in the Early Childhood Classroom. 3月出版，上述 Beyond Coding: How Children Learn Human Values through Programming, focuses on how learning technological skills also involves developing ethical dispositions.
“I am excited to join the Lynch school and the 太阳城网赌平台 community,” said 伯斯. “This is a wonderful opportunity to build on the work of my DevTech research group for the last two decades to have wider impact in laying out a pedagogical foundation for teaching programming that encompasses the cultivation of character and a moral compass along with technical knowledge and skills.”
In 2022, 伯斯 was named an AERA Fellow by the American 教育 太阳城官网 Association, an honor that acknowledges exceptional contributions to and excellence in education research. 早些时候, she received the AERA’s Jan Hawkins Award for Early Career Contributions to Humanistic Scholarship in Learning Technologies, and a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers from the Office of Science and Technology, 这是美国政府授予的最高荣誉.S. government on outstanding researchers and technologists launching their external careers.
伯斯 conducts seminars and professional development institutes on learning technologies for early childhood educators, and serves as a consultant to toy companies, 媒体工作室, 学校, and educational organizations seeking to capitalize on the power of new technologies for young children. She has worked with international partners in Argentina, 哥伦比亚, 西班牙, 哥斯达黎加, 新加坡, 以色列和泰国, 等.
She completed her undergraduate studies in Communication Sciences at the University of Buenos Aires, 1994年, 来到美国.S. 她在哪里收到了M.Ed. in 教育al Technology at Boston University’s School of 教育, and a M.S. 和Ph值.D. in Media Arts and Sciences from the MIT Media Laboratory.
The Augustus Long Professor is named in honor of the former president, 椅子, 德士古公司的首席执行官., who received an honorary degree from 太阳城网赌平台 in 1957.
Phil Gloudemans | University Communications | September 2022