Research seminars
We host free online seminars on current computing education research topics. Speakers from around the world present their work in the field.
This is your opportunity to learn from the latest research insights, make connections with fellow educators and researchers, and take part in discussions.
Sign up to join
Join an upcoming seminar session
Our 2024 seminar series is on the theme of teaching programming (with or without AI). In this series, we explore the latest research on how teachers can best support school-age learners to develop their programming skills.
Seminar take place on the first Tuesday of each month at 17:00–18:30 BST / 12:00–13:30 EDT / 9:00–10:30 PDT / 18:00–19:30 CEST.
14 May: Stephen MacNeil, Andrew Tran & Irene Hou (Temple University)
Generative AI is changing undergraduate education; and undergraduate research too!
The advent of generative AI has triggered transformative shifts in computing education, leaving educators scrambling and students pondering their futures. Amidst this uncertainty, Stephen MacNeil and his team have observed a surge in opportunities for undergraduate involvement in research. Over the past two years, their lab has welcomed over 50 undergraduate researchers, with an impressive 73% of them co-authoring a published paper or poster.
Engaging in generative AI research has proven cathartic for students, empowering the students with agency and the ability to shape their own futures in computing. In contrast to the uncertainty in the classroom, student researchers appear to be more confident and engaged than ever. This talk will include some of experiences and strategies that MacNeil’s team has used to involve undergraduates in computing education research focused on generative AI, while showcasing outstanding projects spearheaded by undergraduate researchers.
Dr Stephen MacNeil is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer and Information Sciences at Temple University, Philadelphia, USA, where he directs the Human–Computer Interaction (HCI) Lab. His work in computing education spans inclusive classroom design, scalable undergraduate research ecosystems, and generative AI in education. He has published over 15+ papers on generative AI and hosted multiple related workshops and ‘birds of a feather’ sessions at computing education conferences.
Andrew Tran is an undergraduate student at Temple University studying computer science. Since joining the HCI Lab, he has produced 9 papers and posters about generative AI and computing education. In addition to his role as a researcher, he has participated in software engineering internships at startups and Fortune 500 companies. Andrew has held several leadership roles as President of Temple University's ACM chapter and as the Director of Temple University's annual hackathon, OwlHacks.
Irene Hou is a Research Lead at Temple University's HCI Lab. She graduated from UC San Diego with a BS in cognitive science and a minor in computer science. Her current research focuses on the intersection of generative AI, computing pedagogy, and human–AI interaction. She has received acceptance to PhD programs at UCSD, UCI, and UW, and is set to commence her doctoral studies in the fall of 2024.
11 June: Veronica Cucuiat (Raspberry Pi Foundation)
More information coming soon.
16 July: Leo Porter (UC San Diego)
More information coming soon.
8 October: Juho Leinonen & Arto Hellas (Aalto University)
More information coming soon.
Catch up on previous seminars
We have had the privilege to learn from many incredible researchers since we started our seminars in 2020, and we're excited to share their talks with you. Explore the archives below to watch and read about past seminars.
Seminar recordings
We make the seminar talks available to watch after they take place. Discover recordings from our current and previous series on programming; primary (K–5) computing; cross-disciplinary computing; artificial intelligence; and equity, diversity and inclusion.
Summaries on the blog
After each seminar, we publish a short blog to sum up some of its main take-aways and share the video recording of the speaker's talk. Each blog highlights how the seminar applies to teachers' classroom practice. Browse the archive of seminar blogs.