The data shows: teachers matter

At Code.org, over 300,000 teachers have used Code Studio to teach their classes, and millions more students have started coding on their own outside of school without a teacher. We thought we’d take a look at the data to see the impact of having a teacher in the classroom. It confirms what we all know from our own experiences… teachers matter!

The stats consistently show the impact teachers are having:

Persistence

When we measure engagement on Code Studio we focus on students who stay active for 30 days. These are the students who persist through harder challenges, and they are really trying to learn computer science. Not surprisingly, a teacher increases the likelihood students will stick with it and keep trying.

Proficiency

Learning isn’t just about using the tools. When we measure student’s proficiency at computer science concepts such as loops, conditionals, or sequencing, students in classrooms consistently demonstrate basic proficiency at more concepts than their peers working alone at home.

See our teacher blog for more information on how we measure proficiency.

Diversity

We’ve seen millions of self-driven students on Code Studio take the initiative to start learning computer science on their own. Roughly 6 out of 10 of these students are male. In contrast, teachers who bring computer science into their classrooms reach more girls — 47% female. Teachers in our classrooms also reach large numbers of underrepresented minorities. In our most recent survey of classroom teachers, 49% of their students were underrepresented minorities in computer science. (Because we don’t ask students studying on their own for race information, we can’t compare this to numbers outside of school.)

Many girls don’t proactively pick up computer science outside of school because they believe it isn’t for them. When teachers bring it into the classroom, it allows them to break those stereotypes and discover for themselves if this is something they want to pursue further. And, many will. Academic exposure is one the top three factors that impact whether a girl will go on to study computer science. In fact, they are 10 times more likely to study it in college if they get a chance to take AP computer science in high school. Black and Hispanic students are 7 times more likely. (source)

Inspiring learning

The numbers above are impressive, and it isn’t because these teachers have years of engineering experience. In fact, most of Code.org's computer science teachers did not learn the subject in school. Over 30,000 teachers have now been through our professional learning workshops and they come from a variety of backgrounds including math, english, library, art, and science.

You might think a lack of prior expertise in the subject would hinder their ability to teach students. In fact, these teachers play the critical role of lead learner in the classroom, modeling an approach to problem solving, persistence, finding problems, and collaboration. The Code.org curriculum blends online and “unplugged” activities. Why? It gives the students an opportunity to learn from each other and their teacher and not just a computer. Without a teacher, the students miss out completely on the unplugged activities and classroom connection — and the results show.

I want to say thank you to the hundreds of thousands of computer science teachers who have worked to give their students this opportunity. And, if you know someone who would like to start teaching computer science, we’re offering free workshops around the country to help them get started. You don’t need any prior experience - just a desire to learn. And that is something teachers excel at!

Hadi Partovi
Code.org