Sec. 2. Findings

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The Congress finds the following: Computer science is transforming industry, creating new fields of commerce, driving innovation in all fields of science, and bolstering productivity in established economic sectors. Computer science underpins the information technology sector of the United States economy, which is a significant contributor to the economic output of the United States. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that from 2008 through 2018 more than 1,500,000 high-wage computing jobs will be created in the United States economy, making high-wage computing one of the fastest growing occupational fields.

The breadth of industries requiring computing professionals is diverse, two-thirds of computing jobs are in sectors other than information technology, including manufacturing, defense, health care, finance, and government. Providing students with computer science education in elementary and secondary school is critical for student success in the 21st century and for strengthening the workforce. Elementary and secondary computer science education gives students a deeper knowledge of the fundamentals of computing, yielding critical thinking skills that will serve them throughout their lives in numerous fields.

Computer science courses in elementary and secondary schools are fading from the national landscape at a time when they are most needed. The Computer Science Teachers Association

(CSTA)has found that introductory secondary school computer science courses have decreased in number by 17 percent since 2005 and the number of Advanced Placement

(AP)computer science courses has decreased by 33 percent. Significant disparities in access to computer science education exist for minorities. Research in the Los Angeles Unified School District, the second largest and one of the most diverse school districts in the United States, found college-preparatory computer science courses were commonly missing in schools with high numbers of Latino and African-American students. Only 14 States allow computer science courses to count toward a student’s secondary school graduation requirements, chilling student interest in computer science courses. The CSTA has found that many States do not have a certification or licensure process for computer science teachers, and where certification processes do exist, such processes often have no connection to computer science content. Computer science education has been encumbered by confusion regarding the related but distinct concepts of computer science education, technology education, and the use of technology in education. Computer science education courses have often been placed within the vocational education pathways in schools, creating a focus on applied information technology skills rather than a focus on developing core computer science knowledge. With the growing importance of computing in society, the need for students to understand the fundamentals of computing, and the significant challenges computer science education faces in elementary and secondary education, broad support for computer science education is needed to catalyze reform.