Hawaii-2017-SCR168-Introduced

WHEREAS, computer science drives job growth and innovation throughout the economy and society of the State, with occupations involving computing making up over two-thirds of all projected new jobs in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields; and

WHEREAS, recent survey and research results highlight the importance of robust computer science curricula, and the disparity between the demand for computer science education and its availability, for example:

(1) Ninety percent of parents want their child's school to teach computer science, but only forty percent of schools teach it;

(2) Fifty percent of Americans rank computer science as one of the two most important subjects of study after reading and writing;

(3) Seventy-five percent of Americans believe computer science is cool in a way that it wasn't ten years ago;

(4) Students who learn computer science in high school are six times more likely to major in it, and women are ten times more likely; and

(5) Sixty-seven percent of parents and fifty-six percent of teachers believe students should be required to learn computer science; and

WHEREAS, as of December 2016, there were 1,343 open computing jobs in Hawaii, and that the average salary for a computing occupation in Hawaii is $78,414, compared to the average salary in the State, which is $47,740; and

WHEREAS, only fourteen schools in Hawaii offered the advance placement computer science course in 2015-2016, and while ninety percent of parents want their children to learn computer science, only forty percent of schools teach computer programming; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-ninth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2017, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Department of Education is requested to develop and implement a computer science curricula plan statewide for all students from kindergarten through twelfth grade, which includes:

(1) The goals of the computer science curricula;

(2) Strategies for accomplishing the Department's goals; and

(3) Timelines for carrying out the strategies described in the plan; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education is requested to establish, and make publicly available, computer science standards across all grade levels from kindergarten through twelfth grade, which focus on the creation and use of software and computing technologies at all grade levels; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education is requested to provide dedicated funding for rigorous computer science and professional development and course support in the Department's budget; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department is requested to establish dedicated computer science administrative and leadership positions; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Education is requested to require that every public intermediate, middle, and high school offer computer science courses based on rigorous standards for each grade level, which may include remote and in-person courses; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that any student who completes a computer science course receive credit for that course toward core graduation requirements at the school that the student attends; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the University of Hawaii is requested, as part of its admission process, to allow students to substitute computer science courses for other required course credits; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Chairperson of the Board of Education, Superintendent of Education, and Chairperson of the Board of Regents of the University of Hawaii.

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title:

Department of Education; Schools; Computer Science; Curricula Plan

THE SENATE	S.C.R. NO.	168
TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2017
STATE OF HAWAII