Teacher Feature: Mark Gasaway

Mark Gasaway

Covenant Christian Academy, Loganville, GA

Tell us about yourself

I have been teaching at Covenant for the last 7 years. I have been introducing technology into the classroom since I have been teaching. I have been looking for a way to introduce coding into the classroom. I became interested during the Hour of Code campaign, and decided to try it with my advanced computer science class. After observing the first few weeks, I became more excited to see the students wanting to work through problems and begin to understand coding.

“[CodeHS] teaches so many other disciplines like math, reasoning, language, and cooperation.”

Tell us about your students

I have 10 students in my advanced class. Most are interested in some sort of tech field. I have some athletes others who are really focused on computing.

Has CodeHS been an effective teaching tool for you? How so?

CodeHS has been a great tool in allowing some students to become very effective in coding. It has required even my quickest learning students to slow down. The program has created a level field for all the students to participate.

What do your students enjoy about learning with CodeHS?

They enjoy being able to move at their own pace. They do not have to wait for each other, but can excel at a pace that is comfortable for them. At the same time, students begin working with each other to help solve problems. We have a real collaborative leaning environment.

“I usually have to tell the students it is time to go at the end of class, because they want to stay and finish.”

What is the most creative way you have used CodeHS?

I plan to use CodeHS as a warm-up activity in my next class. I want to expand the number of students using the program, because it teaches so many other disciplines like math, reasoning, language, and cooperation.

What does a typical day in your classroom look like?

We come in and the students start working on their code. We are self-paced and they start where they left off from the last class. Some students that are further along will assist others in writing or solving the code problem. It is great to see peer review and assistance. The students are teaching each other. I have set milestones to check progress, but students seem to breeze by these most of the time. I usually have to tell the students it is time to go at the end of class, because they want to stay and finish.

What stategies have ou utilized to help students overcome challenges while learning to code?

When we come across a problem that is stumping several students, we actually work on it as a class. This becomes group coding. We will write it out and debug the code together. I have seen students that are usually quiet participate because they got that part of the code. It is a good break from the keyboard since we use the white board to write it out.

What’s the funniest thing that’s happened in your CodeHS class?

The funniest thing to happen is watching student’s reactions when someone they don’t expect solve the code. The student that solves the code sits a little higher and the others look at him a little differently.