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All About Computing in the Core

Computing in the Core (CinC) is a non-partisan advocacy coalition of associations, corporations, scientific societies, and other non-profits that strive to elevate computer science education to a core academic subject in K-12 education, giving young people the college- and career-readiness knowledge and skills necessary in a technology-focused society. CinC encourages awareness building activities, policy changes and research at national, state, and local levels to build a strong foundation for the future of computer science instruction. It will engage federal and state policy makers, educators, the public, and the media to meet these goals.

Computer Science Education Week logoComputer Science Education Week is a major awareness-building activity of the Coalition.

Principles:

Members of the coalition believe the following principles should underpin K-12 computer science education and its reform:

  • Computer science curriculum must focus on conceptual knowledge, such as algorithmic or computational thinking.
  • Computer science courses, such as Advanced Placement Computer Science, must be considered an academic subject within the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) curriculum and must count toward a student’s core graduation requirements, either as a computer science credit or as a math or science credit.
  • Ethnic and gender diversity in the information technology field and computer science classrooms is crucial to the long-term success of the field.
  • Federal and state education programs must address the recruitment and retention of new computer science teachers and provide adequate professional development opportunities for existing teachers.
  • Students throughout grades K-12 should be exposed to grade-appropriate computing and computer science concepts through formal computer science courses and their integration across the STEM disciplines.
  • Computer science teacher certification programs must be based on models that reflect the content and pedagogical knowledge of the field and appropriate education background.
  • Federal education research programs must address improving the curriculum and pedagogy of computer science.

  • Improving K-12 STEM education generally, attracting more students to these courses and improving the diversity of these students is critical to the computer science field.

Executive Committee:

Association For Computing Machinery
Computer Science Teachers Association
Google
IEEE Computer Society
Microsoft
National Center for Women and Information Technology

Board Members:

Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology
Association For Computing Machinery
The College Board
Computing Research Association
Computer Science Teachers Association
Google
IEEE Computer Society
Microsoft
National Center for Women and Information Technology
National Council of Teacher of Mathematics
National Science Teachers Association
Oracle
SAS