LPFI Working in Partnership to Improve Computer Science Education in Oakland

We are pleased to share with you our unique partnership to improve computer science education in Oakland.  We recently formed a Computer Science Working Group with the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD), comprised of OUSD  math, science and computer science teachers, administrators and non-profit partners.
The Working Group was formed in direct response to the alarming number of students who are not being prepared to compete in the innovation economy.  Despite statistics projecting a sharp increase in new computer-related jobs, recent data revealed:

• 65% of California’s public high schools offer no computer science courses
• Fewer than 13% of California’s public high schools offer AP Computer Science
• African-American and Latino students, represent 59% of the California high school population, but only 11% of  students taking the 2014 AP CS test

The group’s first action was to help pilot the Technology Education And Literacy in Schools (TEALS) program in Oakland for the 2014-2015 school year. TEALS pairs teams of industry volunteers with classroom teachers to teach computer science courses.

The partnership between LPFI, OUSD and TEALS is celebrated by the Oakland community of parents, teachers, students and the tech community. “OUSD is full of classrooms with students who are prepared to learn computer science,” noted Claire Shorall, a computer science teacher at Castlemont High School.  “LPFI provides the research and resources to create an informed plan for the district and TEALs provides enthusiastic volunteers.  The partnership between OUSD, LPFI, and TEALs has been invaluable in making AP Computer Science a reality for my students at Castlemont High School.”

Our research team will release “Path Not Found”, a report providing a detailed  analysis of  computer science education in California on May 7, 2015.

As always, we are grateful for your continued support of our many efforts to advance a vital agenda of preparing all our young people for the workforce of tomorrow – an agenda that affects us all.

LPFI Partnership Team

Computer Science access in Oakland Unified School Districts an important first step toward increasing diversity in Tech!