CS Education
Amazon Adding 3,000 More Schools to Computer Science Education Program
Amazon is extending
the reach of its computer science education program to a total of
more than 5,000 schools, more than doubling the number of
participating institutions. Applications
are now open for schools that wish to participate.
The program, Amazon
Future Engineer, provides funding for computer science courses and
courseware, and offers online support and teacher professional
development. Scholarships and internships are also offered as part of
the program.
With the expansion,
Amazon Future Engineer will serve more than 550,000 students, with an
emphasis on schools with a high percentage of students who belong to
underrepresented groups. About 20 percent of the participating
schools serve elementary grades. The remainder are middle and high
schools.
According to Amazon,
at the elementary level, which is new to the program, “The Amazon
Future Engineer sponsorship provides three years of ongoing onsite
professional development to elementary teachers on the content and
pedagogy of computer science education. The sponsorship provides
everything districts need to implement a sustainable computer science
initiative. This includes eight onsite professional development
workshops, ongoing model teaching and coaching, curricula and teacher
lesson plans, and an online Instructional Coach Course to ensure the
sustainability of the program.”
Further details
about Amazon Future Engineer can be found at
amazonfutureengineer.com.