Computational thinking: modeling applied to the teaching and learning of English

In this paper, we describe the first phase of a cross-disciplinary project between computing and English faculty who explored how computational thinking skills such as abstraction, modeling, and iteration can be used to support English faculty in teaching students to write well. This initial phase of collaboration focused on developing and applying a model to capture fundamental concepts for teaching composition with special emphasis on those related to clarity. We iteratively developed a complex concept map that can act as a curriculum planning and teaching tool. In the next phase of the project, we plan to adapt selected exercises from traditional writing courses to include computational approaches such as modeling, and to test which audiences benefit from these revised exercises.