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Lack of Access to Computer Science Resources, Not Lack of Interest, Negatively Impacts Students from Underrepresented Groups


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A computer class at Northwoods Middle School, North Charleston, SC.

While some of the data did not come as a surprise, the impact of the intersection of location, rural vs. urban, socioeconomic status, gender, and race clearly points to the need to address what has become a systematic lack of access.

Credit: Wired

A Gallup study commissioned by Amazon Future Engineer, a program created to help students build computer science (CS) knowledge and coding skills, found that at schools that offer CS classes, 68% of students are interested in them, while 49% of students whose schools do not offer such classes are interested in the topic.

The study of 4,116 U.S. public and private school students in grades 5-12 also found only 18% of students whose schools do not offer CS classes plan to study the topic in college, compared to 42% of those whose schools do offer the classes.

Further, only 15% of those whose schools do not offer the classes aspire to a career in computer science, compared to 43% of those whose schools do, according to the study.

From Forbes
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Abstracts Copyright © 2021 SmithBucklin, Washington, DC, USA


 

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