Through the Looking Glass: Computer Science Education and the Unintended Consequences of Broadening Participation Policy Efforts

This experience report provides insights into the unintended consequences of five states efforts to make computer science education policy changes in an effort to broaden participation in computing (BPC). At the 2019 Expanding Computing Education Pathways (ECEP) meeting, several member-states were invited to share about the unintended consequences of computer science education policy reform in their states. Due to the nature of policy making and implementation, marginalized communities including students, practitioners, and under resourced schools are most impacted by education policy reform efforts. As computer science education gains traction as an education policy priority in states and districts, it is important to learn the lessons of past education policy failures and successes, specifically how these policies could trigger unintended consequences that will impact the broadening of participation within K-12 computer science education. The examples put forth by the states include unintended consequences of policies such as making CS count as a graduation requirement, defining computer science, developing CS standards, and teacher certification. These experienced unintended consequences may be relevant to other states seeking to make CS policy changes. This paper concludes with a reflection on the ECEP model as a tool for mitigating these unintended consequences as part of the BPC efforts.