INDIANAPOLIS (April 29, 2016) - Project Lead The Way (PLTW) announced Friday that the College Board has named it an endorsed provider of curriculum and professional development for the Advanced Placement®Computer Science Principles (AP CSP) course. The endorsement affirms that all components of PLTW’s Computer Science Principles (CSP) course are aligned to the AP’s standards for curriculum and assessment. Students who take PLTW CSP will be able to take the AP CSP exam for college credit.
Before announcing its endorsement, the AP Program completed an intensive review of PLTW’s CSP curriculum, course syllabus, and professional development program. PLTW’s CSP is a full-year course for high school students, designed to develop their computational thinking abilities, expand their knowledge of career paths that utilize computing, and introduce professional tools that foster creativity and collaboration. Using Python® as a primary tool and incorporating multiple platforms and languages for computation, CSP helps students develop programming expertise and explore the workings of the Internet. Projects and problems include app development, visualization of data, cybersecurity, and simulation. Through PLTW’s comprehensive professional development model, PLTW CSP teachers receive all of the course materials, support, and resources they need, including content knowledge and lesson plans.
The College Board encourages schools to use an endorsed provider for AP CSP, as it affords them access to resources including an AP CSP syllabus pre-approved by the College Board’s AP Course Audit, and officially recognized professional development that prepares teachers to teach AP CSP.
In addition to this official endorsement, PLTW’s partnership with the College Board offers students recognition for completing the requirements of their chosen pathway in computer science, engineering, or biomedical science. To earn the recognition, the student must satisfactorily complete three courses in the pathway — one AP course; one PLTW course; and a third course, either AP or PLTW — and earn a qualifying score of 3 or higher on the AP Exam(s) and a score of Proficient or higher on the PLTW End of Course (EoC) assessment(s). The AP + PLTW student recognition demonstrates to colleges and employers that the student is ready for advanced course work and interested in careers in this discipline. The College Board and PLTW will award the first cohort of recognition earners in summer 2016.
The PLTW Computer Science program offers options that build students' computational thinking and empower them with in-demand skills they will use for the rest of their lives, on any career path they take. Course offerings include Introduction to Computer Science, Computer Science Principles (CSP), Computer Science A, and Cybersecurity (2018-19).
Project Lead The Way (PLTW) is a nonprofit organization that provides a transformative learning experience for K-12 students and teachers across the U.S. PLTW empowers students to develop in- demand, transportable knowledge and skills through pathways in computer science, engineering, and biomedical science. PLTW’s teacher training and resources support teachers as they engage their students in real-world learning. More than 8,000 elementary, middle, and high schools in all 50 states and the District of Columbia offer PLTW programs. For more information, visit www.pltw.org.
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