KAYLA PAPAKIE
NOT JUST AVAILABLE, BUT ACCESSIBLE
Bringing CMU CS Academy into the Spanish Language
Sofía De Jesús was teaching in a middle school when she first used CMU CS Academy, a free program that provides computer science curricula and professional development to help middle and high school instructors teach programming skills.
“As a teacher, I was always looking for resources. I’d used so many of them, but my students and I would get bored, so nothing had stuck,” she said. “When I found CMU CS Academy, for the first time I was like, ‘I can teach with this.‘ “
Founded in 2018 by Mark Stehlik and David Kosbie, both University Teaching Professors of Computer Science, CMU CS Academy teaches Python, a text-based programming language that is the most widely taught language at the university level. The online program offers several different curricula, including the flagship course, CS1: Introduction to Programming with Python; a lightweight version of CS1 for middle schoolers; and a college preparatory course that has the option for students to earn CMU credits.
Non-native English speakers can struggle in English-based computer science programs, especially Spanish speakers. A year after its initial launch, Stehlik and Kosbie championed the need for a Spanish version of the program and began piloting the translation work with CMU undergraduate students.
Simultaneously, De Jesús reached out to inquire about translation plans after completing her CS1 Level 1 and Trainer certifications.
Sofía De Jesús, associate program manager, CMU CS Academy
“Having gone to school in heavily Hispanic communities, I feel like having access to a Spanish program that allowed for a wider range of people to learn about coding and its impact on the world would have provided more options and opened the eyes of many students to a career they might have not considered before. I hope that our work allows for more people to join the amazing, ever-growing world of computer science. There are so many careers possible through that area of study or interest that, at least to me it seems that way, it can fit for anyone and everyone.”
— José Raúl Anaya Meléndez, Spanish Translation Team Member
The CMU CS Academy team
“I loved it so much that at some point I ended up sending an email saying, ‘Hey, if you ever think about translating, just let me know,’” recalled De Jesús, who has volunteered her time to translate other materials. Elated to hear that translation was already underway, she joined the CMU CS Academy team full time in July of 2021 as associate program manager.
About 15 percent of U.S. residents are native Spanish speakers, and that percentage has grown 40 percent year-over-year since 2009. Educational programs celebrate when they enroll these diverse students, yet there are still barriers to learning after getting in the door.
“Availability and accessibility are not the same, and they’re not interchangeable,” De Jesús said. “If a course is available, but it is not in your language, the process for learning is different. It can be taxing and even physically exhausting. Having resources in Spanish makes a massive difference.”
The Spanish translation team includes School of Computer Science students and students from other programs, many of whom come from different Latin American countries, including Argentina, Cuba, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Colombia. De Jesús also works with foundations and Ministries of Education in Latin America and districts in the United States to help support teachers using the curriculum.
“Having a group from so many different backgrounds is a really cool way to tackle a translation project. All of their knowledge and experiences kind of bleed into that translation,” De Jesús said.
“After becoming interested in CMU CS Academy, I remember reflecting on how I wish I could have started earlier. Having access to a Spanish computer science curriculum would have been extremely helpful, especially when I was much younger. I chose to get involved with the Spanish Translation Team simply knowing how many students could possibly spark an interest in programming or computer science and have the chance to pursue opportunities earlier, benefiting from the confidence that comes with experience.”
— Andrés del Cid, Spanish Translation Team Member
Daniela Hernandez, a senior artificial intelligence major in SCS and one of the students on the project, says the experience has been fun and eye-opening to the challenges of translation.
“Choosing translations sometimes posed a challenge due to the diversity of our team members, each having different words for certain things,” Hernandez explained. “Deciding on universally understood terms and representations proved difficult.”
The word for the color brown, for example, in many Spanish-speaking countries is “marrón.” But in Cuba, they often use “carmelita” instead, as a reference to the color of the habits worn by the nuns and monks in the Orden de las Carmelitas. Considering these regional nuances, the team had to do their best to standardize the translations, making clear notes on the intended meaning for each word to prevent confusion or inconsistencies. Each translation also underwent an editorial process to ensure correctness. It was a huge undertaking, consisting of translating not only the courses and code, but also any supporting material and services, including documentation, virtual assistance and in-person training.
Daniela Hernandez, a senior AI major in SCS and head TA for the Spanish team
“A crucial aspect of expanding the curricula involves teaching the material to Spanish-speaking teachers so that they can teach their students,” said Hernandez, who is currently the head TA for the Spanish team. “I’ve had the opportunity to collaborate with teachers from Puerto Rico, Mexico, Colombia, Chile and Ecuador, among other countries.”
The team also had to be cognizant of the different user modalities. While both the teacher and student could be using the program in Spanish, there are also many cases where a teacher uses the program in Spanish while the student uses it in English, or vice versa. The team had to ensure a seamless teacher-student experience no matter which language was toggled on either end.
“The way we’ve done the translation is flexible enough for people to use it and have all the resources regardless of which version they’re in,” said De Jesús.
More than 370,000 students in total have used CMU CS Academy, and there have been over 56,000 classrooms created. On any given day, there are nearly 50,000 students and 2,100 teachers using the program. The top countries for users in Spanish are Colombia, Ecuador, Puerto Rico and Mexico. They are also rolling out the program in Chile.
While the CS1 curriculum translation has been completed, the team views it more as a work in progress.
“Overall, translations are an ongoing process,” said Hernandez. “We continually enhance, rearrange and modify the content as needed, striving to make the material as clear as possible.”
The next planned curriculum translation is College Programming and Computer Science, the college preparatory course that provides optional CMU credits. And although she will not be an official member of the CMU CS Academy team once she graduates in May, Hernandez hopes to stay involved.
“I plan to stay connected and contribute in any way possible,” she said. “Witnessing the remarkable projects our students complete with the knowledge they’ve gained from the course is truly inspiring. Knowing I played a small role in providing them with this content makes me proud to be part of such an amazing team.” ■
Rachel Wilson, a senior CS major, Hispanic studies minor and CMU CS Academy translation team member
Rachel Wilson, a senior computer science major, said her involvement with CMU CS Academy’s Translation Team has sparked her interest in a research project. Wilson, who is also a Hispanic studies minor, does not come from any particular dialect of Spanish. Rather, she learned the language in school.
While working with CMU CS Academy in the spring of her first year as a member of the Outreach Team, Wilson heard about the translation project and became interested from afar. “I wanted the opportunity to practice Spanish, but I did not yet have the confidence to say, ‘Yes, I can translate’,” she said. After expressing interest in shadowing the translation team, Wilson was thrown in almost immediately. By summer, she was working to convert both the code and content into Spanish.
Wilson returned for a second summer with CMU CS Academy feeling much more confident in her language and translation abilities. That summer, she led professional development trainings and taught code completely in Spanish.
“That was probably the most fun I’ve ever had because the teachers were so eager to learn and they loved the support we provided,” she said. “It really makes you feel like a superstar.”
Wilson, who will be staying at CMU after graduation to complete the Fifth Year Scholars program, says the experience opened her eyes to the ways in which computer science, teaching and Spanish could all be combined. “It was the perfect intersection of my interests, and it has been a huge inspiration for my Fifth Year Scholars project. I want to investigate the effects of learning code in a person’s native language.”