A New Era for Advanced Placement Computer Science

A New Era for Advanced Placement: Computer Science Principles & Innovative Problem Solving MENA Teachers Summit, Dubai 2017

Agenda ► Advanced Placement Courses ► The need for AP Computer Science Principles (AP® CSP) ► Course and exam details ► Become an AP CSP teacher ► Bring AP CSP to your school ► Q&A 2

Advanced Placement

What is AP®? College Level work in High School College Board’s Advanced Placement Program® (AP®) is composed of challenging collegelevel coursework and assessment taken while still in high school ► ► 4 AP course syllabi, content indicators, and skill measurements are the result of constant collaboration and partnership between secondary school teachers and college level faculty and reflect what is taught during introductory college courses. Students take AP Exams at the end of the course, measuring their mastery of collegelevel work. A score of 3 or higher on an AP Exam can typically earn students college credit and/or placement into advanced courses in college. 38 AP courses including Computer Science A and Computer Science Principles Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

The Need for AP CSP

Why AP® Computer Science Principles? Of the more than 9 million STEM jobs available in the next decade, half will require computing experience. STEM Careers in 2020 (Projected) Computing Architecture/Engineering Life Sciences Social Sciences 2. 8 M Physical Sciences 4. 6 M Mathematics Others 0. 1 M 0. 4 M 0. 6 M 6 Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

A Computer Science Background Improves Earning Potential A computer science major can earn 40% more than the college average. Source: Code. org

Why AP® Computer Science Principles? The Diversity Challenge Percentage of Computer Science Majors Who Were Women 1985 2009 Percentage of Today’s Software Workforces 2012 Male 80% Female 20% Asian 37% 18% Source: Department of Education 18% 29% Hispanic 5% Black 4% Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics AP CSP is designed to encourage broader participation in computer science, especially among women and minorities. 8

Two AP® Computer Science Courses Computer Science A Computer Science Principles Course Goal Encourage skill development among students considering future studies & career in computer science or other STEM fields Encourage broader participation in CS & STEM, including AP CSA Curricular Focus Problem solving and object-oriented programming Big ideas of computer science (including programming) Programming Language Java Teachers choose Assessment Experience 9 ► Multiple-choice and freeresponse questions ► ► Multiple-choice exam Two performance tasks administered by the teacher, and students submit digital artifacts

Development of AP® CSP Goals A Collaborative Process ► Make computer science more engaging and accessible ► Partnership with the National Science Foundation since 2008 ► Reach students underrepresented in computer science ► Educators from over 50 leading high schools and higher education institutions piloted the course ► Better prepare students for the job market of today –and tomorrow ► Prior to launch, over 90 colleges and universities created policies to grant credit and/or placement Schools began to offer AP CSP in Fall 2016, with the first exam administration taking place in May 2017. 10

The Largest Course Launch in AP History The Numbers In 2016 -17 • 2, 500 schools administered exam with 2, 600 teachers trained for the course • 50, 000 students took exam in 49 states Female students 30 000 27 400 25 000 20 000 15 000 10 000 13 10 500 7 8 800 58 00 00 20 000 15 000 10 000 5 000 85 6 4 00 49 00 37 00 00 - 20 13 20 14 20 15 20 16 20 17 5 000 20 100 25 000 20 13 20 14 20 15 20 16 20 17 Success • Participation in CS by females and underrepresented minorities doubled as a result of AP CSP launch. URM students

Engaging All Students will learn: ► Creative problem solving and real world applications ► How to apply computational processes to analyze large data sets ► Programming and impacts of computing innovations ► How the Internet works and important cyber security issues “Every student has this ability to create things that they didn’t even imagine they could create. And when they do, it starts to draw them in and inspire them to think well beyond what they even imagined. ” —Richard Kick AP® Computer Science Principles Teacher

Course and Exam Details

Overview of Curriculum Framework Computational Thinking Practices 1. Connecting computing 2. Creating computational artifacts 3. Abstracting 4. Analyzing problems and artifacts 5. Communicating 6. Collaborating 14

Overview of Curriculum Framework Big Ideas 1. Creativity 2. Abstraction 3. Data and Information 4. Algorithms 5. Programming 6. The Internet 7. Global Impact 15

Illustration from Curriculum Framework Big Idea 2: Abstraction Data Abstraction: ► LO 2. 1. 1 Describe the variety of abstractions used to represent data. ► LO 2. 1. 2 Explain how binary sequences are used to represent digital data. Procedural Abstraction: ► LO 2. 2. 1 Develop an abstraction when writing a program or creating other computational artifacts. ► LO 2. 2. 2 Use multiple levels of abstraction to write programs. ► LO 2. 2. 3 Identify multiple levels of abstractions that are used when writing programs. Abstraction and Models: ► LO 2. 3. 1 Use models and simulations to represent phenomena. ► LO 2. 3. 2 Use models and simulations to formulate, refine, and test hypotheses. 16

Illustration from Curriculum Framework Big Idea 2: Abstraction 17

Overview of Assessments Through-Course Assessment (Weight = 40%) Performance Task Individual Weight Explore: Implications of Computing Innovations 16% Create: Applications From Ideas 24% End-of-Course AP® Exam (Weight = 60%) Item Type Multiple Choice (Single- and multiple-select) 18 Number 74 questions Timing 120 minutes

Become an AP® CSP Teacher

Teaching the Course ► AP Computer Science Principles can be taught by Computer Science teachers and teachers in other disciplines. “AP CSP provides the teacher with just as much opportunity to explore their own creativity and thought processes as we hope to instill in our future discoverers. ” — Brian Fuschetto AP® Computer Science Principles Teacher 20

Resources and AP® Course Audit Available at AP Central ► Course and Exam Description − Curriculum Framework − Through-Course Assessment Implementation Guide ► Curricular and Resource Requirements ► Syllabus Development Guide ► Sample Syllabi ► Example Textbook List ► Full Practice Exam – accessible when AP course authorization has been received 21

Options to Adopt CSP Curriculum and PD ► CE 21 and STEM+C National Science Foundation (NSF) − Beauty and Joy of Computing − Mobile CSP − Thriving in Our Digital World ► Code. org ► Project Lead The Way collegeboard. org/CSPschool

Bring AP® CSP to Your School

Bring AP® CSP to Your School 24 1. Add the course to your catalog 2. Recruit Teachers – teachers in other disciplines can teach this course 3. Recruit Students – especially those underrepresented in Computer Science 4. Choose a Curriculum – develop your own or explore CSP partners 5. Submit Course Audit Info – Opens in March 2016 6. Check Recommended Classroom Resources – make sure your school/classroom aligns with course recommendations 7. Stay Connected – sign up at collegeboard. org/CSPinterest

Recruiting Underrepresented Students 1. Focus on the course being demographically representative of school population. 2. Recruit clusters of students from groups that have been historically underrepresented in computing. 3. Extend an invitation to all students to enroll in CSP. 4. Encourage current students to showcase computing projects, and advocate for computer science in school events. 5. Reach parents by providing course information sheets in multiple languages. 6. Reach counselors by providing descriptions of the course creativity, communication and collaboration. Strategies drafted by Joanna Goode from the University of Oregon and co-author of Stuck in the Shallow End. 25

Resources Advances in AP® Links to: Collateral (coming soon): ► Introduction video ► Teacher/administrator brochure ► Interest form ► Parent/student flyer ► AP CSP Teacher Community ► Bring AP CSP to Your School flyer ► Curriculum Framework ► AP student site ► CSP curriculum and PD collegeboard. org/APCSP 26

More questions? Web: collegeboard. org/APCSP Email: APCSP@collegeboard. org