Collaborative Research: Identifying Participation Barriers to Computer Science Education in Rural Mississippi

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The primary goal of the small strand, K-14 project "Collaborative Research: Identifying Participation Barriers to Computer Science Education in Rural Mississippi" is to develop a researcher-practitioner partnership (RPP) to identify barriers to participation in computer science education in high poverty, rural areas of Mississippi. In the past two years, a collaborative effort between the Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) and Mississippi State University's (MSU's) Research and Curriculum Unit (RCU) implemented a statewide computer science pilot offered free of charge to K-12 schools. Entering the third year of the pilot, 74 of 148 school districts in the state are now offering computer science courses; however, it has been observed that districts situated in the most rural, highest poverty, and lowest income areas in the state (primarily the Delta region) are not participating in the opportunity to provide their teachers free computer science professional development and thereby offer students access to courses that would begin preparing them for jobs in a very high-demand, high-salary career. Through a RPP, issues and perceptions will be investigated to determine why these districts are not taking advantage of this opportunity to offer computer science education in the classrooms.This collaborative project between MSU and Mississippi Valley State University (MVSU), a four-year institution of higher learning located in the Delta, will form a partnership with teachers, administrators, and counselors from six districts in the area surrounding MVSU, as well as the local community college, business owners, community leaders, and parents, to identify issues acting as barriers or constraints to computer science education opportunities. Identifying and addressing the root causes of the lack of participation in these types of demographic and geographic areas will give a voice to those who are most directly involved, while also transforming perceptions of computer science and broadening participation in the field based on contributions from more diverse groups, primarily African American teachers and students.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.