Northwest Arkansas educators discuss plans for computer science requirement

FARMINGTON -- State education officials anticipate all high schools will need to offer a computer science course this fall, based on a promise Gov. Asa Hutchinson made during his campaign.

"One of his first major initiatives will be the passage of a computer science bill," said Debbie Jones, assistant commissioner of learning services for the Arkansas Department of Education, while speaking to a group of Benton and Washington county school administrators Thursday.

The group met for the monthly meeting of the Northwest Arkansas Education Service Cooperative board in Farmington.

Few high schools in Arkansas offer computer science, Jones said.

"It will be a change," Jones said. "It's an attempt to grow the workforce for computer science."

In the past, educators have focused on preparing students for college and beginning careers, a short-term period after high school graduation, said Randy Barrett, Gentry superintendent, who is president of the cooperative's board. Offering courses such as computer science changes the focus.

"The focus needs to be, 'Are we preparing students for life?'" Barrett said. "The end result is you're going to have to get a full-time job."

In anticipation of legislation the governor will introduce, the department assembled a team of educators and business representatives who will meet next week to develop standards for a new computer coding course for high school students, Jones said. The standards will go to the state Board of Education in February.

If the standards are approved, Virtual Arkansas, a state-supported provider of digital courses, will create a free online course offered to school districts statewide, Jones said.

Gentry students receive instruction in elementary school on keyboarding, and children across grade levels use computers, but Gentry High School doesn't yet offer computer science, Barrett said. For small districts such as Gentry, it will be a challenge to find a teacher qualified to teach computer science, he said.

He was pleased to learn about the plans for a course offered through Virtual Arkansas.

Department officials also have offered Hutchinson's office suggestions for other courses that high schools could offer to satisfy the requirement for computer science, Jones said.

The department has developed standards for a new computer science and math course that will be an option for the 2015-16 school year, Jones said. The course satisfies a 12th-grade math requirement if taught by a certified math teacher, but could be taught by a business teacher and count as a career course, she said.

Some schools also offer computer science courses through their Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate programs.

The department expects for the legislation to establish a task force to study the skills students will need to learn from elementary school through high school to succeed in computer science courses, she said.

Bentonville Superintendent Mike Poore told Jones his district is interested in a more creative approach to computer science. Poore likes the approach some schools in the Kansas City, Mo., area have taken with computer programming courses.

The courses involve high school students working on coding projects with businesses, Poore said. Students there have acquired two to three coding languages in the process, he said.

Such a course would deviate from the traditional delivery method, including using instructors coming from industry, Poore said.

"It's based on kids having relevant experiences," Poore said.

NW News on 01/16/2015

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