fulbright research: integrating computer science into chile's high schools

Integrating Computer Science into Chile’s High Schools

JAMIE KENT

Start-up Chile

MOVE OVER SILICON VALLEY.

3 Proprietary & Confidential | © 2017

Start-up Chile is a government initiative that recruits foreign entrepreneurs to establish early stage companies within the country

§ Goal is to grow Chile’s technology sector

§ Start-up Chiles gives winning participants funding in exchange for the company’s relocation to Chile

Objective: Grow Chile’s technology sector, diversifying the economy

4 Proprietary & Confidential | © 2017

Work Space

Start-Up Chile uses a different model to incentivize entrepreneurs

Traditional venture funding Start-up Chile

Funding

A percentage of company

A board memberposition

Venture capital firms give…

In return, start-ups give them…

Funding

Stay in Chile(6 months)

Speak at events and mentor

Start-up Chile gives… In return, start-ups will…

Visa

5 Proprietary & Confidential | © 2017

Start-up Chile offers 3 types of funding

6 Proprietary & Confidential | © 2017

Who is receiving this funding?

http://www.economist.com/node/21564589, https://www.marsdd.com/systems-change/advanced-energy-centre/news/talent-innovation-no-nationality-start-chile/

7 Proprietary & Confidential | © 2017

Although Start-up Chile has been successful in attracting foreign entrepreneurs, the program lacks a plan for training Chilean students.

Source:

8 Proprietary & Confidential | © 2017

Of 9 Entrepreneurial framework conditions, Chile’s worst score is in schools.

Source: GEM 2015/16 Global Report

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Entrepreneurship education at school stage

Internal market dynamics

R&D transfer

Entrepreneurial finance

Internal market burdens or entry regulation

Government policies: support and relevance

Commercial and legal infrastructure

Entrepreneurship education at post school stage

Government policies: taxes and bureaucracy

Cultural and social norms

Government entrepreneurship programs

Physical infrastructure

GEM score for Chile, out of 9 possible points

2015-2016 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor Ranking of Chile Across 9 Entrepreneurial Framework Conditions

9 Proprietary & Confidential | © 2017

Of 9 Entrepreneurial framework conditions, Chile’s worst score is in schools.

Source: GEM 2015/16 Global Report

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Entrepreneurship education at school stage

Internal market dynamics

R&D transfer

Entrepreneurial finance

Internal market burdens or entry regulation

Government policies: support and relevance

Commercial and legal infrastructure

Entrepreneurship education at post school stage

Government policies: taxes and bureaucracy

Cultural and social norms

Government entrepreneurship programs

Physical infrastructure

GEM score for Chile, out of 9 possible points

2015-2016 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor Ranking of Chile Across 9 Entrepreneurial Framework Conditions

Entrepreneurship education at school stage

What are the most effective methods of teaching technical skills like computer science in Chile?

Proprietary & Confidential | © 2017

My research will consist of three phases.

Phase Research Question Objectives

IWhat skills are most needed in start-ups?

IIHow are these skills currently being taught in schools?

III What are the most effective methods for teaching?

Quantify the skill gap in Chile.

Recruit education decision makers to revise the curriculum to better prepare Chilean students for technical careers

Proprietary & Confidential | © 2017

The majority of my time will be devoted to studying teaching methods.

Phase Research Question Timeline

I What skills are most needed in start-ups?

IIHow are these skills currently being taught in schools?

III What are the most effective methods for teaching?

MONTHS

1 month

1 month

7 months

Phase I: Understanding the skill gap

WHAT SKILLS ARE MOST NEEDED IN CHILEAN START-UPS?

Proprietary & Confidential | © 2017

What skills are most needed at Chilean start-ups?

§ I will employ two methods to holistically understand the human capital needs of startups

§ Method I: Qualitative analysis- Observe interviews

§ Method II: Quantitative analysis - Survey human resource personnel

§ Objective: Understand the skills start-ups are struggling to hire for

Start-ups in Valparaiso and Santiago

Objective: Understand the skills start-ups are struggling to hire for

Phase II: Identify top-performing schools as candidates for a controlled experiment on teaching methods

WHAT IS CURRENTLY WORKING WITHIN THE CHILEAN EDUCATION SYSTEM?

Proprietary & Confidential | © 2017

I’ll analyze publicly available data from the Agencia de Calidad de la Educación to identify top-performing schools

§ The data contains test performance, as well as attributes like student to teacher ratio.

§ I’ll perform regression analysis to identify correlations between school attributes and test performance

Objective: Select a short list of top-performing schools to conduct further research on computer science teaching methods

Test scores of high schools in Concepción

Phase III: Case studies of top-performing schools

HOW CAN WE COST-EFFECTIVELY TEACH SKILLS LIKE COMPUTER SCIENCE?

18 Proprietary & Confidential | © 2017

What are the most effective methods of teaching technical skills like computer science throughout Chile?

§ I will conduct 10 case studies of high-performing secondary schools

§ Method I: Qualitative observation- Observe classrooms- Interview teachers

- Objective: Explain high performance (Phase II)

§ Method II: Controlled experiment- Teach control groups of students with a different lesson plan- Test comprehension

Objective: Qualitatively explain high performance (identified in Phase II)

Objective: Identify methods of teaching technical skills (identified in Phase I) VALPARAISO, ATACAMA, LOS LAGOS REGIONS

Professor Castañeda and the University of Santiago, Chile

20 Proprietary & Confidential | © 2017

Professor Castañeda will help connect me with education decision makers

§ Professor Castañeda has contacts at the Ministry of Education

§ I’ll audit graduate-level classes in computer science at the University of Santiago, Chile

RESEARCH MENTOR

Objective: Understand the Chilean approach to engineering

Objective: Influence education decision makers

21 Proprietary & Confidential | © 2017

I plan to integrate with the community by organizing sporting events for participating students

Publish and distribute my research findings online

Influence education decision makers to incorporate technical skills into the curriculum

I hope to expand upon the early success of Start-up Chile by closing the gap between high school education and job attainment

23 Proprietary & Confidential | © 2017

Follow along!

Website coming soon

Follow along!

Questions?