A new report published by Computer Science Teachers Association (
CSTA) provide the findings of year-long research project that looked at how computer science education standards were reflected in current state standards and the results are both startling and worrisome.
Running on Empty: The Failure to Teach K-12 Computer Science in the Digital Age finds that roughly two-thirds of the country have few computer science education standards for secondary school education, and most states treat high school computer science courses as simply an elective and not part of a student's core education. The results are particularly shocking because computer science and the technologies it enables now lie at the heart of our economy, our daily lives, and scientific enterprise. As the digital age has transformed the world and workforce, U.S. K-12 education has fallen woefully behind in preparing students with the fundamental computer science knowledge and skills they need for future success. To be a well-educated citizen as we move toward an ever-more computing-intensive world and to be prepared for the jobs of the 21st Century, students must have a deeper understanding of the fundamentals of computer science.
In addition to providing the general results of the research, the authors have created a report card for each state which shows the extent to which the national standards provided in the ACM Model Curriculum for K-12 Computer Science Education are (or are not) reflected in the state business, computing, math, science, and technology standards. They have created an
online roll over map showing these results by state.
