Guidance

Despite the critical importance of developing computer science (CS) skills and knowledge for all students, many schools and districts lack the capacity, resources, and strategic planning to provide a robust CS learning program. By participating in PACE, a set of six districts in Massachusetts, the majority rural and/or high-needs districts, identified CS as a crucial area of focus for their students. To that end, they engaged in multiple years of systems-level change activities to install a new infrastructure so that all students had access to rigorous high-quality CS instruction.

The Difference with PACE: Teachers, Administrators, and Students in Participating Districts Weigh In

• “Students need to see that they can do CS, and that it isn’t really that hard. We can see a transformation in students in just three weeks, where they go from saying they can’t do it to being the lead programmer for their group.” —PACE Teacher
• “At the high school, we’ve moved from having no classes three years ago to currently six sections of CS. We now see our students coming in with skills and understanding of CS that wasn’t present before, and that makes a difference in what I can teach and what we can do.” —PACE High School CS Teacher
• “Kids see the results, and it helps them persevere: it’s really exciting time for kids. At first they’re kind of really nervous, and they’re, like, ‘I’m never going to learn this.’ But then, when we’re halfway through the unit, and they’re making things. Now is the final week of the quarter so they’re actually making games that work and the codes running, and students are, like, ‘Wow! Look at what I did!’, and just to hear the enthusiasm and excitement in their voice.” —PACE Teacher
• “I thought it was just like I’m stuck on a computer, and I get told what to do. But then when I got to do a project, and I saw that it was totally my idea, I got to use whatever programming I wanted I could do, whatever my mind was set to, that was very good…” —PACE Student
• “I started to get more into editing things and a little bit more into coding, so I started to realize it’s more applicable to real life stuff nowadays.” —PACE Student

Leadership support is crucial, but district stakeholder councils make the work sustainable and scalable. PACE included the creation of District Stakeholder Councils (DSCs), a group of teachers, administrators, counselors, and community members who met at least four times a year to oversee the implementation of a robust CS program. The DSC helped maintain momentum during turnovers in the central offices of multiple districts.

Guidance from Practitioners

• It was helpful to have an external facilitator from PACE who served to keep the work moving forward and brought the group together. The facilitator took responsibility for arranging schedules, setting an agenda, and leading the discussion.
• Modest stipends provided through PACE to DSC participants helped some to overcome their hesitancy to take on leadership roles around CS and also indicated that the DSC was a meaningful commitment that was important.
• It was important for the DSC to have tangible products and artifacts that marked its work. For example, the vision statement rovided a clear purpose for what the group was going to do together.
• The DSC meetings provided a space to coordinate CS activities and make CS programming consistent across grades and courses.

Establish CS as a school and district priority on the course schedule. Districts must be willing to create urgency and establish CS as a priority by getting it on the master schedule for all students. One PACE leader emphasized the importance of ensuring that each student is guaranteed exposure to CS:

[You need to] build in consistent exposure for all students, because they don’t know what they don’t know. Get CS in front of them. We wouldn’t have done this step without PACE but [adding CS to each student’s schedule] is a very good way to get started as a district- and systems-strategy.

Guidance from Practitioners

• Many districts faced logistical challenges to get CS on the schedule for all students, but in the end, all were successful. To create urgency, an important strategy was to highlight how CS aligns with state and local policies, such as the Massachusetts CS standards, and district strategic plans.
• Even if your goal is to improve CS across K−12, it’s strategic to start with a focus on the middle grades, which can then be tied into the other grade spans. Also, practitioners noted that it’s easier to get girls interested in CS in middle school than in high school.

Teachers and administrators have a role to play in communicating to students that CS is a priority. Practitioners recommended taking the time to “sell” CS courses to students and to make course titles relevant and engaging as a way to increase enrollment—especially enrollment by girls specifically.

Make sure to have the building blocks needed to create a CS infrastructure—collaboration, coordination, and materials. Creating a districtwide infrastructure for CS requires time, which needs to be used purposefully to create systemic levers. For example, librarians in one district had led units on programming through Scratch, but it wasn’t until they joined PACE and worked with a liaison that it was done systematically and made available to all students to the same extent.

Guidance from Practitioners

• Think critically about the materials used in your CS curriculum. PACE participants found it valuable to have colleagues, either in their school, district, or community of practice, with whom they could review materials. These networks were especially valuable because PACE teachers noted that they benefited from collaborating with their colleagues to apply the new curricular materials in their classes.
• Coordination across grades and elementary, middle school, and high school grade spans is necessary. In PACE, the DSC meetings provided a dedicated time and process for these levels of coordination.
• Similarly, DSC meetings and PACE community events provided PACE participants with valuable opportunities to learn collaboratively. These opportunities were not available prior to PACE when many CS teachers worked in isolation from others in CS.

Take steps to build staff confidence in order to get buy-in to CS. PACE participants said that districts should expect to have to build CS capacity among staff, especially with staff in rural districts, and that staff, like students, may not see themselves as CS experts and leaders. One PACE district administrator underscored the need to build trust among staff:

From the administrative perspective, it’s about building relationships with teachers so that they’re comfortable taking these academic risks—bringing in new curriculums, and sometimes it doesn’t go well, or sometimes certain robotics aren’t the right fit, and kids get crazy sometimes when they have these things in their hands. So, creating that atmosphere where there’s an understanding that it’s okay to take these academic risks, let’s try it together. If you’re a partner with these teachers, you’re in it with them. You’re willing to take these risks with them. So just developing those relationships is key.

Guidance from Practitioners

• Ensure that your plan includes time for staff to get used to the CS materials and curriculum. Many staff were doubtful or uncomfortable when PACE began (even if they had a CS certification). However, over time and with support, they found their comfort level with their roles in supporting CS instruction grew.
• Access to professional development (PD) was a major help to CS teachers. Multiple participants noted that the Code.org PD was a good match for them and provided a good foundation and entry into CS instruction.
• The use of stipends for participation in PD and the DSC helped several teachers overcome their initial hesitancy and served as motivation for entering into the work.
• Instruction in CS is different than instruction in other courses, as the teacher’s role is more frequently facilitating rather than leading direct instruction. This was an adjustment for some teachers, and they needed time to adapt.

Don’t just analyze data—look for warts. To create a stronger CS pathway, you need to have good data and be willing to look at it critically. In one PACE district, an initial analysis of student enrollment in CS courses at the department level found no discrepancies. However, a closer examination revealed large gender differences at the class level, with many more boys than girls in a CS Advanced Placement class, and many more girls than boys in a digital literacy course. Through discussions facilitated by the PACE liaison, the DSC identified increasing the representation of girls in the AP class as an area of focus in their CS planning.

Guidance from Practitioners

• Inequitable participation and achievement in CS can be hidden in some datasets. For example, practitioners noted that gender discrepancies were only apparent when looking at the most rigorous CS courses and were not apparent when looking at CS enrollment across all courses.
• It’s important to distinguish between digital literacy and CS courses when looking at enrollment, as CS courses tended to focus more squarely on CS skills and knowledge and had gender discrepancies in enrollment.