Scholarships Available to Teachers for Code.org computer science professional learning program
Code.org is offering scholarships for thousands of eligible middle and high school teachers to attend professional learning workshops. The workshops prepare teachers from all backgrounds to teach computer science in their classroom—no prior computer science experience is necessary. The workshops begin with a 5-day, in-person summer workshop and continue with 4 single-day follow-up workshops throughout the year. Dates and locations are assigned by region.
The lack of a computer science teacher is the biggest barrier to offering the subject in most schools, even though computer science is among the fastest growing industries in the United States. Currently, just 35% of U.S. high schools teach it and only 10% of STEM graduates study it. What’s more, computing and computer science are plagued by tremendous underrepresentation of African American, Latinx, and female students, despite the fact that these groups represent 65% of the entire U.S. population.
Nearly 100,000 educators have taken Code.org workshops since 2013, with 98% saying they would recommend the program to another teacher. More than a third of U.S. schools use Code.org’s curriculum, including the largest school districts in the country, such as Los Angeles Unified School District, Broward, and Dallas Independent School District.
Student surveys also show that students who have access to computer science consistently rank it as one of their favorite subjects, and a Gallup poll shows that 90% of parents want their children to learn computer science. In the 21st century, all students can benefit from learning foundational computer science, whether they want to be lawyers, doctors, entrepreneurs, scientists, designers, or choose any other career path.
No-cost, one-day professional development workshops for elementary teachers are also available regionally year-round.
Tags: AACTE partner organizations, STEM, technology, workforce development
