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  • Expanding Computer Science Education in Rural Areas: Impact of Teacher Training on Teachers’ Identity, Commitment, Confidence and Competence

This content will become publicly available on June 1, 2026

Title: Expanding Computer Science Education in Rural Areas: Impact of Teacher Training on Teachers’ Identity, Commitment, Confidence and Competence
The lack of computer science education in rural areas presents unique challenges in the present pursuit of achieving equitable access to computer science education. The increase in the recognition of the need for computer science education comes with a need for inclusion of rural areas, and a corresponding increase in the demand of competent computer science teachers and educators. Teacher training programs play an important role in meeting these demands. This paper evaluates the impact of a teacher training program with focus on professional identity, commitment, confidence and competence as it relates to the teaching of computer science. The research includes teachers from rural, suburban and town locales enrolled in three separate semester courses. Through a mixed-method design, it uses quantitative data obtained through surveys taken prior to and at the completion of the training program to measure the impact. A combination of p-values and effect sizes were used to measure the impact of the teacher training programs. The survey covers three different domains - Teacher and Computing Identity, Rural Identity and Teacher Mindset, and lastly, Teaching Perceptions and Computational Thinking. Qualitative data gathered through reflective journals provides insights into teachers’ backgrounds and teaching experiences as well as anticipated professional growth. Following the training, findings show that rural teachers reported positive shifts in their identities and teaching competencies and are more likely to advocate for more students to take computer science courses. Teachers from the rural locales also showed a marked improvement in confidence and commitment to teaching computer science.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
2216625
PAR ID:
10652161
Author(s) / Creator(s):
 ;  ;  ;  ;  ;  ; ;  
Publisher / Repository:
ASEE Conferences
Date Published:
Subject(s) / Keyword(s):
computer science education teacher training K-12 rural identity computing identity
Format(s):
Medium: X
Location:
Montreal, Quebec
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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