Chicago Public Schools announced a pilot computer science education program
The Chicago Public Schools has announced that a pilot computer science education program will be implemented at 46 schools in the fall.
The curriculum is designed to provide students computer skills and to make computer science a core subject. The school system will work with Code.org, Google and other technology leaders in an effort to increase the quality of and access to computer science and coding classes.
"By expanding access to computer science skills and coding in schools, we can help prepare Chicago’s students with the skills and knowledge to succeed in a highly specialized, technical economy," Chicago Public Schools chief executive officer Barbara Byrd-Bennett said.
Teaching our kids the foundational skills of computer science and coding will not only open up the door to success in virtually any job industry, but will position them as the next generation of innovators that will move our city forward."
Under the 5-year Computer Science for All plan, one in four elementary schools will offer computer science programming for students as early as kindergarten. At least one computer science course will be offered at every high school and will become a requirement of graduation.
The curriculum will be aligned with the framework of the next generation science standards and the common core state standards in elementary schools. Coding and computer science classes will be available to students year-round across through Chicago City of Learning, a learning initiative that incorporates hundreds of partner sites and organizations throughout the city.
In the fall the initial group of 25 elementary schools will incorporate computer science lessons into their mathematics and science course work, and 21 high schools will offer an entry-level exploring computer science course.
A course based on the Computer Science Principles curriculum eventually will lay the foundation for the advanced placement computer science exam of the same name. The course will follow the concepts taught in the entry level course.
Participating grade schools include Edison Regional Gifted Center, Sauganash School and Sayre Language Academy.
Participating high schools include Amundsen, Lane Tech and Mather.
