Families, Educators Dissatisfied With Computer Science Access

Computer science skills make it possible for students to engage, create and innovate in an increasingly technology-fueled society, and they prepare them for a quickly evolving job market, where computing occupations make up the majority of projected new jobs in STEM fields.

In the latest Google/Gallup study of the state of computer science education in U.S. schools, conducted in late January to early March, about half of U.S. students in grades 7 through 12 reported they had the opportunity to learn these skills at school. Forty-nine percent of students say they learned any computer science at school in the past year. Similar percentages of female and male students and Black, Hispanic and White students reported that they learned computer science at school.

	Overall	Black students	Hispanic students	White students	Girls	Boys
	%	%	%	%	%	%
Yes	49	49	48	51	49	50
No	51	51	52	49	51	50
Google/Gallup, 2020

Among students who reported that their school offers opportunities to learn computer science, slightly more than four in 10 (43%) say they had been enrolled in a class in which computer science was taught as part of it, while 21% say they had been enrolled in a class focused exclusively on computer science.

These findings are among many highlighted in the recently released Google/Gallup report, Current Perspectives and Continuing Challenges in Computer Science Education in U.S. K-12 Schools (PDF download). This report presents results from the third study in Google and Gallup's multiyear, comprehensive research effort to understand perceptions about computer science and access to computer science in K-12 schools. The report includes results from surveys of students in grades 7 to 12, parents and guardians of students in these grades, teachers, principals, and superintendents.

More Than Half of Students Do Not Learn Computer Science in an Average Week

In a typical week, more than half of students, 55%, report spending no hours learning computer science. One in 10 students (10%) say they spend five hours or more learning computer science in a typical week. Additionally, girls are slightly more likely than boys to spend no hours learning computer science in an average week (59% versus 51%, respectively).

These findings align with previously released results about equity gaps (PDF download) in computer science.

	Overall	Black students	Hispanic students	White students	Girls	Boys
	%	%	%	%	%	%
0 hours	55	50	48	58	59	51
1 hour	17	14	22	15	16	17
2, 3 or 4 hours	19	25	18	18	18	19
5 or more hours	10	11	12	8	6	13
Google/Gallup, 2020

Educators Less Satisfied Than Families With Availability of CS Education

Less than half of students, parents and guardians, and educators are satisfied with the availability of computer science education opportunities at their schools. Four in 10 public school students in grades 7 to 12 say they are "very satisfied" or "satisfied" with the availability of computer science education at their schools, which is similar to the 42% of parents and guardians of public school students in these grades who are satisfied.

Fewer public school teachers are satisfied with the availability of computer science learning opportunities for students at their school, with 27% saying they are satisfied. This is driven largely by lower satisfaction among elementary teachers (20%). Somewhat fewer public (26%) than private school (35%) teachers are satisfied with the available computer science opportunities.

	Students	Parents/Guardians	Teachers
	%	%	%
1 -- Very dissatisfied	7	6	10
2	12	10	24
3	26	26	33
4	22	23	19
5 -- Very satisfied	18	19	8
Don't know	14	16	7
Google/Gallup, 2020

Few Students and Parents Have Concerns About Computer Science Learning Quality

Students and parents and guardians generally give good marks for computer science learning quality; still, few rate it as excellent. Three in four parents and guardians overall whose own child received computer science learning in the past year rate the quality of that learning as at least "good." This includes 44% who rate the quality as "very good" (30%) or "excellent" (14%).

Like parents and guardians, students surveyed in grades 7 through 12 rate the quality of the computer science learning they received in the past school year generally positively, with 73% rating it as at least "good," though, like parents and guardians, few (13%) rate it as excellent.

	Students	Parents/Guardians
	%	%
Poor	6	3
Fair	17	13
Good	33	31
Very good	27	30
Excellent	13	14
Don't know	5	9
Among students or parents/guardians who personally or whose child learned computer science at school in the past year
Google/Gallup, 2020

Implications

Relatively few students, parents and educators are satisfied with the availability of computer science learning. Likewise, even among those with access to computer science education, parents and students are unlikely to rate the quality of the computer science learning their child/they received at school as "excellent."

With growing dependence on technology, there is a great and unmet need for computer science education in schools so that students learn the skills necessary to excel in their future workplaces. Students, parents and educators express a desire for more and better computer science learning opportunities, suggesting that expanded programs could help prepare today's students for the future economy.

This is the second article in a four-part series that explores results from and implications of the Current Perspectives and Continuing Challenges in Computer Science in U.S K-12 Schools (PDF download) report. Accompanying articles cover perceptions of the importance of computer science and insights about girls' computer science interest and aspiration.