Award Abstract # 1339403
CS 10K: IDoCode: A Sustainable Model for Computer Science in Idaho High Schools

NSF Org: CNS
Division Of Computer and Network Systems
Recipient: BOISE STATE UNIVERSITY
Initial Amendment Date: March 12, 2014
Latest Amendment Date: November 17, 2016
Award Number: 1339403
Award Instrument: Standard Grant
Program Manager: Janice Cuny
CNS
 Division Of Computer and Network Systems
CSE
 Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering
Start Date: March 1, 2014
End Date: August 31, 2018 (Estimated)
Total Intended Award Amount: $992,067.00
Total Awarded Amount to Date: $1,046,143.00
Funds Obligated to Date: FY 2014 = $992,067.00
FY 2017 = $54,076.00
History of Investigator:
  • Amit Jain (Principal Investigator)
    ajain@boisestate.edu
  • Jyh-haw Yeh (Co-Principal Investigator)
  • Tim Andersen (Co-Principal Investigator)
  • Alark Joshi (Co-Principal Investigator)
  • Jonathan Brendefur (Co-Principal Investigator)
  • Alark Joshi (Former Principal Investigator)
  • Amit Jain (Former Co-Principal Investigator)
  • Louis Nadelson (Former Co-Principal Investigator)
Recipient Sponsored Research Office: Boise State University
1910 UNIVERSITY DR
BOISE
ID  US  83725-0001
(208)426-1574
Sponsor Congressional District: 02
Primary Place of Performance: Boise State University
1910 University Dr.
Boise
ID  US  83725-1135
Primary Place of Performance
Congressional District:
02
Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): HYWTVM5HNFM3
Parent UEI: HYWTVM5HNFM3
NSF Program(s): STEM + Computing (STEM+C) Part,
Computing Ed for 21st Century
Primary Program Source: 01001415DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
01001718DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
Program Reference Code(s): 9150, 7578, 023Z
Program Element Code(s): 005Y00, 738200
Award Agency Code: 4900
Fund Agency Code: 4900
Assistance Listing Number(s): 47.070

ABSTRACT

Boise State University (BSU), in cooperation with local high schools and the Idaho Technology Council (a state-wide organization of industry, research, educators, investors, and government), proposes to develop and implement a comprehensive program -- IDoCode -- that will provide high quality CS preparation for high school teachers. Its primary goal is to significantly increase the number of teachers prepared to teach CS in the state of Idaho, and its secondary goal is to increase the number of Idaho high school graduates that are motivated to pursue a CS degree and career. The project leverages two existing degree programs at Boise State: the IDoTeach program (a UTeach replication program designed to increase the number of secondary math and science teachers in the state of Idaho and its surrounding region) for preservice teachers, and the Master of Science in STEM Education for in-service teachers. IDoTeach will prepare teachers to teach the AP CS Principles curriculum, creating CS pathways in both programs. The resulting CS prepared teachers will be further supported through face-to-face workshops, mentoring programs, support from industry, professionals, and online resources. BSU along with local industry partners will work to recruit inservice teachers and high school students (potential preservice teachers) to the programs. The project will create a blueprint for states such as Idaho to provide high quality CS preparation high school teachers.

PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT

Disclaimer

This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.

How do you build a strong foundation of computing skills required for students to excel in almost any field in the 21st century?   By exposing students to computational thinking and problem solving skills woven into the computer science curriculum in K-12.

In 2014, Boise State University received an award (NSF #1339403, part of the CS10K initiative) to introduce high quality computer science in high schools by  training up to 40 high-school teachers who would receive a Masters in STEM Education with Computer Science (CS) Emphasis in the IDoCode program.

As the Boise State CS and Educational department team members began the process to achieve goals, we realized the importance of stakeholder involvement to ensure the outcomes are ?sustainable.?  The effort to bring lasting educational change required the IDoCode team to coordinate efforts with School Districts, Teachers, State Board of Education, Legislature, Industry, Parents, and Students.

The goal to bring computer science to all requires educational professionals take proactive steps to ensure wider student participation.  The chosen curriculum needs to be engaging to all students.  Student graduation standards that allow computer science to count towards graduation requirements is crucial to attract wider student population.  Providing school counselors, teachers, and administration with information to encourage all students to explore computer science educational skills - no matter the student?s future career plan!  Student outreach is crucial to building a thriving program which prepares students with 21st century skills.

The IDoCode program outcomes include:

  • The program has accepted 74 high school teachers into multi-year Masters, Graduate Certificate for CS Teacher Endorsement, and Secondary Education Bachelor's programs.  We will have 22 Graduate Certificates, 20 Masters and one Bachelors completed by Fall 2018.
  • Every high school in the Boise and surrounding areas now offers multiple high quality CS courses.
  • The number of reported students taking computer science courses in surrounding area high schools has gone from 50 to over 1200 during the four years of the grant!
  • We have tracked 3690 students who have participated in CS classes since Fall 2016, with not all teachers or districts reporting.  Additionally 362 students have taken advanced Computer Science course for dual college credit.
  • Teachers are capable of teaching the introductory Exploring Computer Science (ECS) course after they complete the first IDoCode course. AP Computer Science Principles (CSP), AP Computer Science A, and more advanced capstone courses suitable for Academic or Career and Technical Education tracks as they continue the IDoCode program.
  • The IDoCode program actively engaged with school districts and teachers who have established or plans to offer computer science classes. We worked closely with these ?Associate? IDoCode members to adopt the new ECS and CSP curriculum and provide additional training.
  • To promote broad student participation, we:
    • Offered NCWIT?s ?Computing by Design? to 56 teachers, administrators, and counselors with information and resources to support all students as they explore computer science education.
    • Hosted four CS teaching gathering events to build collaboration between CS teachers to share their experiences and best practices.
    • Provided yearly student and teacher summer workshops to show how computer science skills may be incorporated through music and art, as well as mobile application development and cyber security.
    • Held meetings with district representatives throughout the grant life to provide information and seek their feedback.
  • Active participation of the award PIs and personnel with the SBOE and legislature resulted in the creation and adoption of statewide CS teaching standards for teachers and K-12 students, the establishment of Idaho?s CS teacher endorsement, creation of the Idaho STEM Action Center to support and promote broad STEM goals with a special focus on Computer Science, and recent legislation requiring all high schools to offer at least one computer science course starting FY 2020.
  • IDoCode partnerships helped magnify the project results.  For example, IDoCode trained teachers hired by IDLA to bring online CS access to students across the state.  Or partnering with the University of Idaho who created a dual credit CS computational thinking and problem solving workshop and is now replicating the IDoCode program at their campus.

In conclusion, the IDoCode program has been on a journey that took us beyond our original goals of training CS teachers, to expanding access to CS to a broad population through partnerships established along the way.  We wish to thank the effort of others who broke ground on new curriculum and those who brought national attention to the K-12 initiatives.


Last Modified: 11/28/2018
Modified by: Amit Jain

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