Closing the Gender and Underrepresented Minority Gap in CS

Abstract

Gender and racial/ethnic participation gaps in computing is a well-documented problem motivating several interventions aimed at attracting and retaining women and underrepresented students (Black or African American, Latinx, and Native American students) in this high-need area. One such effort is the College Board's Computer Science Principles (CSP) course, a survey course designed to engage students who have traditionally opted-out of computer science in secondary education. UTeach CSP is UTeach's Project-Based Learning (PBL) curriculum designed for the CSP course. Students learning from teachers implementing the UTeach CSP curriculum scored higher on the 2017 College Board AP CSP assessment, when compared with students taught with other curriculum. Scores were significantly higher for girls and Latinx students, even after adjustments were made to standardize the demographic characteristics of the schools where the UTeach CSP curriculum was implemented. This poster presents curriculum design research that suggests explanations for the higher results. The research can also provide CS teachers with ideas for moving beyond traditional lecture-based CS instruction for increased student performance and more diverse engagement. Handouts will be provided with a sample UT CSP project including lesson plan, student handout, video link, pacing guide, assessment, and rubric.