In kicking off Computer Science Education Week, Schools Chancellor Richard A. Carranza announced on Monday that approximately 134,000 students received Computer Science Education from 2017 to 2018.
In Queens, 55,548 students received computer science education in the borough within the same time frame, a DOE spokeswoman said on Dec. 3.
Overall, 359 schools participated in Computer Science Education Week this year and 101 of those schools were in Queens, according to a DOE spokeswoman.
“As we work to advance equity in schools across the city, we’re expanding computer science education to a record number of students across the city – including students, schools, and neighborhoods that haven’t had this access before,” said Carranza. “In our computer science classrooms, students are learning to think creatively and collaborate with each other.”
The 44 percent increase in kids receiving computer science education comes three years after Mayor Bill de Blasio introduced his Computer Science for All initiative for first to 12th graders with the goal that by 2026 at least 80 percent of students who finish high school had instruction in the subject and are college ready and prepared for careers of the 21st century, according to the DOE.
“Computer Science for All is helping even more students across the five boroughs gain critical skills that will help them succeed in college and compete in a 21st Century workforce,” said de Blasio.”
Approximately 93,000 students in the 2016 to 2017 school year received computer science education courses, the DOE reported. Not only have more students taking courses in the subject, but more have also taken and passed the Advanced Placement exam for it.
The number of students taking an AP Computer Science exam in 2017 tripled compared to 2016 citywide, and the number of students passing the test increased fourfold in compared to 2016, according to the DOE. In Queens, 153 students took the test between 2015 to 2016 and 80 passed it, and 541 students took the test from 2016 to 2017 and 279 passed the exam. The 2017 to 2018 numbers are not available yet.
Nationwide, approximately seven percent of the AP Computer Science exam-takers are from New York City public schools.
Some of the major partners supporting the program include the Robin Hood Learning + Technology Fund, Math for America, Arconic Foundation, AirBnB, the WorldQuant Foundation, the Fund for Public Schools and Hearst Foundations.
In the next school year, approximately 1,500 teachers have started Computer Science for All training to bring back to their 659 elementary to high schools, according to the DOE. The City has also created a CS4All Blueprint to help educators and school communities integrate computer science into classrooms.
“We continue to build on our promise to expand the program citywide and this year’s increase reaching a record number of students will help us enrich the lives of even more young New Yorkers,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio.
