Whether it’s game development or program mapping, students stream into the computer-filled room knowing they’re in for an engaging activity. Coming from a family of teachers, AP Computer Science Principles and AP Computer Science A teacher Jason Kluge provides the necessary support students need to overcome challenges within computer science.
Growing up in Pflugerville, Texas, Mr. Kluge’s career path did not clearly lead to education. An indecisive kid, he often entertained the idea of many careers. As he moved on in his high school and college years, however, the teaching path became more apparent as a viable pathway.
“I was a very indecisive kid growing up, and I didn’t know what I wanted to do,” Mr. Kluge said. “My biggest influence [for] going into computer science and becoming a teacher [was] a great teacher in high school, Ms. Stewart. I had her for multiple years, [and] she really encouraged me to go into computer science. [After college], my friends became teachers, and [I was] like, ‘I should come in and sub for their classes,’ so that [also] influenced my decision to become a teacher.”
Upon completing his undergraduate study at the University of Texas at Dallas (UT Dallas), Mr. Kluge chose to continue his studies. He furthered his expertise in computer science while minoring in statistics.
“I was [at UT Dallas] for five years,” Mr. Kluge said. “I did my undergrad in four [years], and I did an accelerated master’s program. [I minored in statistics] because of my AP Statistics teacher. I excelled in AP Statistics and I [thought it was] fun.”
Drawing on his schooling experience, Mr. Kluge understands the challenges students face. He looks to help students overcome these challenges by providing them with specific tools.
“The biggest challenge is probably getting [students] to think algorithmically,” Mr. Kluge said. “Having them change their thinking is a big shift for a lot of kids. You’re having to think through, step-by-step, how things work. I am trying to prompt the kids. I give them resources such as practicing mapping out programs and being able to walk through their steps, and [I] just toss some problem-solving activities at them all the time.”
Although he has only been at Westwood for four weeks thus far, Mr. Kluge knows he enjoys the students’ dedication for education. He plans on making programming engaging by providing fun activities.
“[My students are] funny. I like how invested they are in their education,” Mr. Kluge said. “They make sure they know exactly what they need to do to be successful. We try to provide game-based coding and hands-on activities, like the building blocks activity.”
As the school year progresses, Mr. Kluge is prepared to embrace the challenges and work alongside his students on problems they face. He deeply desires to impact his students, cultivating applicable programming skills beyond preparation for exams and assignments.
“Ideally, I’d like them to leave [the class] learning how to code something, and that’s becoming super relevant in the marketplace right now in terms of jobs,” Mr. Kluge said. “I want them to leave the class being able to have skills that they can use outside of computer science, such as being able to think logically and decompose problems, and [I want to] help with general problem-solving concepts beyond standard programming.”
