"Imagine, if you will, a world where Americans don't teach their children math in elementary school. Imagine that children no longer learn addition in first grade, subtraction in second or multiplication and division in third and fourth. Imagine instead that children make it all the way through high school without having any formal presentation of mathematical concepts. Now imagine that a student is observant enough to realize that adults who have a firm grasp on mathematics have much better problem-solving life skills and financial opportunities than adults who don't. If that student is curious enough to enroll in an undergraduate math class, imagine how frustrating it would be to have the whole arithmetic, algebra and statistics thrown at you in your very first term. Wouldn't it feel overwhelming? Wouldn't you be discouraged... especially if you noticed that several people in the class already seemed to understand the stuff fluently? Wouldn't it be difficult to perceive the subject as one where you have talent?
This hypothetical may seem ridiculous, but the truth is that a similar situation is being played out in America today with the subject of computer science. For many, computer science isn't introduced at a K-12 level, so their first exposure comes in an undergraduate classroom, where they're forced to absorb all of the basic building blocks of computational thinking at lightning speed before they can begin to fathom the concept of programming, design or engineering. To add further blows, a handful of students (often boys) will actually have skills in these areas, making the newcomers feel deficient, awkward and behind." -Kiki Prottsman
This site was created to inform people about the possibilities in computer science education as well as the current state of computer science education. The resources on this site are meant to assist anyone who is trying to educate people in computer science. We need the next generation of people in this country to be prepared for the technology rich world we live in today. We need to teach students to create and innovate not just consume. Teaching computer science is a way to prepare the next generation for life long success in whatever they want to take on.
Right now it is predicted that there will be 1.4 million computer specialist job openings in the U.S. by 2020 but only 30% of these jobs can be filled by U.S. computing graduates, because there just aren't enough. These are just the jobs that are computer specialists, it doesn't even include all the jobs that benefit from a deep understanding of computers.
"If K-12 schools are seeking to make students college- and career-ready, computer science must be part of the
core curriculum." - Running on Empty Report
"No other subject will open as many doors in the 21st Century, regardless of a student's ultimate field of study or occupation, as computer science." - Running on Empty Report
"I think everybody in this country should learn how to program a computer because it teachers you how to think." -Steve Jobs