Transforming High School Computer Science: The Beauty and Joy of Computing

Our Beauty and Joy of Computing course was chosen as one of the national pilots for the new Advanced Placement (AP): Computer Science Principles (CSP) course to broaden participation in computing to traditionally underrepresented groups. Locally offered as a non-majors computing course, BJC was the first introductory CS course in Cal’s recorded history to have greater than 50% female enrollment, and women usually outperform the men! We have reached thousands of learners worldwide though our Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) BJCx, and we have provided professional development to over 300 high school teachers nationwide, with plans for 100 more this summer. This talk will review the state of the “computer science for all” movement, and share how we are moving the needle to transform high school computer science, bringing fun, engaging, and powerful introductory computing ideas to the world.

Speaker: Dan Garcia, UC Berkeley