By Joanie Harmon, published Dec. 9, 2013 on UCLA Ed & IS Ampersand. UCLA’s Graduate School of Education & Information Studies, the Los Angeles Unified School District, and the nonprofit Code.org collectively launched the Los Angeles segment of National Computer Science Education Week at the UCLA Community School on Dec. 10 at the Paul Schrade Library at UCLA Community School, with local and state lawmakers, and industry leaders from Microsoft, […]

Exploring Computer Science was recently mentioned in a Smithsonian article on Educating Americans for the 21st Century… Special Report: Educating Americans for the 21st Century Kids may know their way around a computer, but in order to get a job in the new economy, they will have to know how to write a program, not just use one. By Peg Tyre, published May 23, 2013 on Smithsonian.com. “What the computer […]

ECS coach John Landa and ECS teacher Anthony Pagan, along with Gary Page of CDE and Rosemary Bernier, teacher librarian of Hamilton HS presented at the 34th Annual Migrant Parents Conference in Los Angeles on March 16 on the topic of Exploring Computer Science to Open Doors of Opportunity. The presentation included an overview of the ECS Program, a little taste of the ECS curriculum and learning experience through the […]

ECS Day: Center X’s Computing Initiative Welcomes LAUSD High Schools, Spelman’s Female Robotics Team. The Exploring Computer Science program brings computer science, academic confidence to female students, students of color. By Joanie Harmon, published Feb. 28, 2013 on UCLA Ed & IS Ampersand. On January 31, the ECS team hosted the 4th annual ECS Day at UCLA. Over 400 students, teachers, and administrators from LAUSD attended the event along with […]

Leading the Way… A conversation with Jane Margolis. By Beth Cady and Ceal Craig, published January 2013 on Women in STEM Knowledge Center. Dr. Jane Margolis’ personal and research interests focus on the ways in which society produces and then reproduces inequality and why some individuals do not receive the same opportunities as others. She arrived at her life’s work through a combination of personal and societal events: “I don’t think […]

Despite the fact that computer science (CS) is the driver of technological innovations across all disciplines and aspects of our lives, including participatory media, high school CS too commonly fails to incorporate the perspectives and concerns of low income students of color. This article by members of the Exploring Computer Science team (Jean Ryoo, Jane Margolis, Clifford Lee, Cueponcaxochitl D.M. Sandoval, and Joanna Goode) provides a counter-narrative to this problem. […]

Experiencing gender inequity led Margolis to advocate for computer science education for underrepresented students. By Joanie Harmon, published Jan. 7, 2013 on UCLA Ed & IS Ampersand. Jane Margolis, one of the driving forces behind Exploring Computer Science, speaks from personal experience about her commitment to making computer science accessible for all students, particularly students of color in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). She says that her earlier […]

Students and staff from UCLA’s School of Engineering (CS Department) visited the Exploring Computer Science class at Hollywood HS to talk about computer science and answer student questions about the field of computer science. High school students were able to ask questions about computing, connections to math and computer science, college going, and careers.

Members of the ECS team were recently published in ACM Inroads. ACM Inroads is a magazine intended for professionals interested in advancing computing education in the world. The article is titled Beyond access: Broadening participation in high school computer science. “Broadening participation” and “equity” are now common parlance among computer science reform educators who are challenging the underrepresentation in computer science. However, what do we all mean by these words […]

A new Oakland-based non-profit thinks so. And it’s breaking down the “brogrammer” stereotype, one website at a time. By Julianne Hing, published July 31, 2012 on Colorlines. Jane Margolis of the ECS team and her research detailed in Stuck in the Shallow End are cited in this article about Black Girls Code, an Oakland-based non-profit educational initiative to introduce girls of color to the world of computers and technology. Aita […]