Beth Simon

Dr. Beth Simon is a Teaching Professor in the Department of Education Studies. Her research interests lie in the areas of computing education and online and technology-enhanced teaching. Beth is currently involved in the development of high school computing curriculum and the training and community needs of K-12 teachers wanting to bring computing education opportunities to their students. Previously, Beth has studied the impacts of evidence-based active learning practices (e.g., Peer Instruction) on student outcomes in higher education, student conceptions of computing concepts, and novice computing students’ self-efficacy. Beth is currently the Faculty Advisor for Digital Learning in the UCSD Teaching + Learning Commons where she supports faculty and instructional staff in the use of technology to support their educational efforts both on-campus and through MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses).

Beth has served as a Teaching Professor in the Computer Science and Engineering Department and as Director of UCSD’s Center for Teaching Development (now part of the Teaching and Learning Commons). From 2014-2015, Beth served as the Principal Teaching and Learning Specialist at Coursera, supporting faculty in the development of MOOCs and advising on pedagogical platform development. During 2007-2008, Beth served as a Science Teaching and Learning Fellow in the Carl Wieman Science Education Initiative at the University of British Columbia.

PhD in Computer Science and Engineering

University of California, San Diego, 2002.

MS in Computer Science and Engineering

University of California, San Diego, 1998.

BS in Computer Science and Spanish

University of Dayton, 1995.

Principal Investigator. New Computer Science Faculty Teaching Workshop, National Science Foundation.  2015-2018.

Co-Principal Investigator.  CS 10K: Computer Science: Creating A Village for Educators (CS:CAVE) , National Science Foundation.  2015-2017.

Co-Principal Investigator.  CE21: CS10K: CISS: Computing in Secondary Schools, National Science Foundation.  2014-2016.   

Co-Principal Investigator.  Type I: CE 21: Computing Principles for All Students' Success (ComPASS) , National Science Foundation. 2011-2016.

Principal Investigator.  Peer Instruction in Computer Science, National Science Foundation.  2012-2014.

Principal Investigator.  PeerWise: Students Creating, Sharing, and Evaluating their own Exam Questions, National Science Foundation.  2009-2012.

Principal Investigator.  EAGER: Transforming Attitudes via Best Practices CS1, National Science Foundation.  2009-2011.

Co-Principal Investigator.  Commonsense Computing: What students know before we teach, National Science Foundation.  2008-2010.

Principal Investigator.  Breaking Barriers in Communication – Technology Enabled Active Learning in STEM disciplines, National Science Foundation.  2006-2009.

Principal Investigator.  Tablet PCs in Education, Microsoft Corporation.  2006-2007.

Principal Investigator.  HP Higher Education Technology for Teaching, Hewlett-Packard Corporation.  2006-2007.

Co-Principal Investigator.  Tablet PCs in Education, Microsoft Corporation.  2005-2006.

Interests:  computing education, active learning, online education, technology-enhanced education, Peer Instruction.