Weber School District Computer Science Integration Plan
Careers in Computer Science have a high starting salary and they are in high demand. In addition to building the CS Workforce, providing a fluid, continuous computer science education to all students has many more benefits. By integrating CS principles, students will be better able to think through problems, logically map out solutions, as well as understand and apply mathematical concepts.
In Weber District we have a 3-part CS plan to reach every student and fully develop those who express interest in a CS career.
Part 1
We are going to use our “Fellows Program” to integrate CS concepts into science and math throughout the district and provide this professional development to all teachers. These Fellows are specially trained, excellent teachers, highly respected amongst their peers, and they facilitate multiple PD days each year. We will hire 12 elementary, 3 jr. high, and 3 high school Fellows to be our CS experts and take the lead in providing CS to all students and organize our yearly “Hour of Code”.
A majority of our grant funding will go towards salaries of these Fellows and the CS committee that oversees and trains the fellows. Our Superintendent has agreed to continue their funding afterward the grant period if the results are positive.
Part 2
We offer 10 hours CS modules to every student in Grades K-5, in 20 elementary schools with the hope of expanding into the remaining 10. We also offer several state approved CS elective courses to all students in grades 7-12, many of which satisfy high school graduation requirements in Digital Studies, CTE, and Core Sciences. In grades 10-12, 6 courses offer 23 college credits towards the Programming Essentials Certificate, Web Essentials Certificate, and the Cyber-Security Essentials Certificate from Weber State University. We are developing a plan to provide CS internships and apprenticeships, completely bridging the gaps between high school education - college education - career opportunities.
Grant funding will be used to purchase equipment for these classes to provide students with hands-on applications.
Part 3
Finally, we offer multiple extracurricular clubs to challenge students and enhance their CS skills. For example, in the 19-20 school year, we had 75 elementary and over 20 jr high teams compete in multiple VEX IQ robotics competitions. Additionally we had 4 VEX EDR competition teams from our high schools. Students compete in CS events in our TSA (Technology Student Association) and our FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America) CTSO (Career and Technical Student Organization) competitions. These extra-curricular clubs allow students to see a practical application of what they learn in school as well as build their confidence in their own abilities.
Extra-Curricular Funding will come from a variety of school funds, CTE CTSO funds, and other grants.
Weber School District is committed to providing CS education to our students very seriously. Our 3-part CS plan will reach every student in the district as well as provide the additional classes, support, and extracurricular experiences to ensure they are successful in a CS career field.
