Barriers to Equitable CS Expansion: Perceptions of Secondary Teachers of Computer Science during COVID-19

To understand secondary teachers of computer science's perspectives on barriers to implementing equitable CS instruction during the COVID-19 pandemic, the research team administered a survey to the CS for All Teachers virtual community of practice in Spring 2021 and examined responses from middle and high school teachers of CS (n = 349). We used the CAPE framework (Capacity, Access, Participation, and Experience) to ground our analysis of survey responses. Key Finding 1 is that secondary CS expansion is limited due to competing priorities related to college preparation and standardized testing requirements, which do not usually include CS (Capacity; Access). Key Finding 2 is that student access to broadband at home creates barriers to secondary CS learning (Access; Participation; Experience). These findings reinforce the evidence base that expanding K-12 CS education (before, during, and after COVID-19) faces significant barriers due to gaps and disparities in CS education policies and inequities in students' access to necessary technology.