Understanding Computer Science Teacher Capacity: A Case Study of Wisconsin Public High Schools

Background: This research paper focuses on syn-thesizing state-level data sources on Computer Science (CS) education by creating algorithmic processes to aggregate the various data sources available. The expanding landscape of CS education (CSE), particularly at the high school level, has wit-nessed significant growth in participation in CS courses. However, to effectively prepare students for careers in engineering and computing fields, it is imperative to ensure the presence of highly qualified teachers to educate and guide them from the foundational level. Utilizing the C.A.P.E. theoretical framework, our research introduces a methodology to understand the CSE landscape through the lens of the teacher capacity model in WI public high schools. Research Question: This research outlines a case study of Wis-consin (WI) public high schools, primarily focusing on utilizing the C.A.P.E. framework to answer: What methodological process should be considered to measure equity-focused capacity, access, and participation of the CSE landscape for WI public high schools? Methodology: We obtained data from the WI Department of Public Instruction (DPI), encompassing course enrollment, student demographics, teacher certification, and staff reports. The data spans Academic Years (AY) 2017 through 2023. For consistent data reporting, our analysis focuses on 503 public high schools in WI, supplemented by data from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). This integration of data sources can offer valuable insights into the CSE landscape at the state level. Findings: Access to certified CS teachers positively coincides with higher participation in CS courses across diverse racial and ethnic groups of the WI public high school student population. However, our analysis reveals a critical shortage of CS teachers, with nearly 40 % of certified teachers in public high schools having over 25 years of teaching experience, suggesting an impending wave of retirements within the next 5–10 years. Contribution: Our objective is to provide a case study of WI public high schools by integrating noisy and unlinked data sources to understand the algorithmic process we followed to grasp the meaning of the CSE landscape. This analysis can help guide stakeholders and policymakers in allocating resources to alleviate inequities and shortfalls in the current CSE landscape, aiming to secure increased funding and expanded opportunities for CSE.