Computer Science Teacher Certification Requirements
Ensuring Exemplary Teaching in an Essential Discipline:
Addressing the Crisis in Computer Science Teacher Certification
For computer science teachers, the challenge of becoming and remaining exemplary educators is hampered by systems of
pre-service education and teacher certification that are profoundly disconnected from the discipline of computer science
and the needs of teachers and students.
This white paper addresses a number of aspects of the crisis in high school computer science teacher certification. It
includes a comprehensive description of the issues relating to certification, a review of the relevant research literature,
a selection of examples of current teacher certification models, and a set of recommendations for a multi-level model that
will provide detailed requirements for educators from multiple pathways, including new teachers, teachers from other
disciplines with computer science experience, teachers with no computer science experience, and people transitioning to
teaching from business and industry.
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A Link Between Certification and AP CS
The CSTA Certification Committee feel it is interesting to note that there may be a link between strong teacher certification
requirements and the number of students who write the AP CS A exam in each state. Both Maryland and Texas have strong
teaching certification requirements and therefore it is interesting to look at the data from 1998 to 2008 and see what
this might mean if other states adopt stronger teacher requirements. Maryland bucked the national trend and has steadily
increased the number of students taking the CS AP A exam from 1998 to 2008.
| MARYLAND
|
| Year
|
1999
|
2000
|
2001
|
2002
|
2003
|
2004
|
2005
|
2006
|
2007
|
2008
|
2009
|
Students
|
337
|
480
|
571
|
599
|
623
|
673
|
725
|
752
|
808
|
895
|
1038
|
And while Texas did have a decline in 2003, the number of TX students writing the CS AP A exam has been increasing since
then. Texas now has more students taking the AP CS A exam than any other state by over 900 students (Calif is second with
2135 in 2008).
| TEXAS
|
| Year
|
1999
|
2000
|
2001
|
2002
|
2003
|
2004
|
2005
|
2006
|
2007
|
2008
|
2009
|
Students
|
1266
|
1743
|
2110
|
2191
|
1980
|
2099
|
2167
|
2411
|
2593
|
2951
|
3224
|
2007 CSTA Certification Committee Report
Overview and Project Goal
Computer Science in K-12 schools is an area of increasing interest and concern to educators as well as to Computer
Science professionals. Computer Science is an established discipline at the undergraduate and graduate college levels.
However, educators and Computer Science professionals are concerned that K-12 students lack the opportunity to become
well prepared to pursue an expertise in this area at the college level. This has contributed to the existing shortage
of expertise in Computer Science related careers. In a recent article published in the Washington Post, Bill Gates,
Chairman of Microsoft Corporation, stated that "Computer Science employment is growing by nearly 100,000 jobs annually.
But at the same time studies show that there is a dramatic decline in the number of students graduating with Computer
Science degrees" (How to Keep America Competitive; Washingtonpost.com).
The goal of this study was to gather information
on the current state certification requirements for K-12 teachers of Computer Science, and compare it across states. This
project is one of many currently being conducted by the Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA), with the goal of
increasing awareness of the importance of Computer Science in the job market and improving the quality of K-12 teacher
preparation. CSTA believes that addressing the current issues in teacher certification is a key requirement for ensuring
that K-12 students are prepared to pursue a career in this area of demand.
|
