Dr. Yolanda Rankin (School of Information) is part of a team of researchers who conducted a special session at the SIGCSE Technical Symposium on March 4th. The special session, titled, “Piecing Together the Next 15 Years of Computing Education Workshop Report”, focused on critical areas of need in computing education, including broadening participation among students and teacher professional development.

The SIGCSE Technical Symposium provides a forum for educators to discuss issues related to the development, implementation, and evaluation of computing programs. Rankin’s report, which was a collaboration with researchers from multiple universities, studies issues in computing science education that require immediate attention in order to create a more diverse and inclusive environment. Such issues include the culture of computing science departments and how that culture impacts student ability to persist in the program (as well as the field as a whole).

“This particular Special Session is really an invitation to join us in addressing these issues which we outline in the presentation,” said Rankin. “I hope that attendees of the workshop will understand that there is much work to be done and that each person has a role to play in ensuring the success of K-16 CS education.”

To learn more about the SIGCSE Technical Symposium, click here.