SLS 15RS-2849 ORIGINAL
2015 Regular Session
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 162
BY SENATOR NEVERS
CURRICULA. Requests DOE to study the feasibility of establishing AP Computer Science
as an equivalent advanced mathematics course for purposes of satisfying high school
graduation and TOPS eligibility requirements.
1 A RESOLUTION
2 To urge and request the state Department of Education, in consultation with the Board of
3 Regents, the Louisiana Workforce Commission, and the Department of Economic
4 Development, to study and make recommendations regarding the feasibility of
5 establishing the Advanced Placement Computer Science course as an equivalent
6 advanced mathematics course for purposes of satisfying high school graduation
7 requirements and for determining student eligibility to receive a Louisiana Taylor
8 Opportunity Program for Students award.
9 WHEREAS, computing is a major part of daily life and most occupations and is
10 transforming the way students think about, and interact with, the world; and
11 WHEREAS, "Computing in the Core", a non-partisan advocacy coalition that strives
12 to elevate computer science in K-12 education, notes that computer programming jobs
13 represent more than half of the jobs in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics
14 (STEM) fields, and projects that by the year 2020 there will be more than one million
15 unfilled jobs in this area; and
16 WHEREAS, wages in computer programming jobs are approximately seventy-five
17 percent higher than the national median salary; and
18 WHEREAS, the Advanced Placement Computer Science course introduces students
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SLS 15RS-2849 ORIGINAL
1 to computer science with topics that include problem solving, design strategies and design
2 methodologies, organization of data, approaches to processing data (algorithms), analysis
3 of potential solutions, and the ethical and social implications of computing; and
4 WHEREAS, successful math classes are those that produce students who are able to
5 mathematically model real-life problems and effectively communicate and represent
6 mathematical principles; and
7 WHEREAS, a report issued by "Transforming Post-Secondary Education in Math"
8 recommends that gateway math courses align with major programs of study and high school
9 graduation requirements and that multiple entry-level math pathways be developed for
10 students; and
11 WHEREAS, given current high school graduation requirements, and the TOPS core
12 curriculum, many students find it difficult to take a computer science course as an elective.
13 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
14 does hereby urge and request the state Department of Education, in consultation with the
15 Board of Regents, the Louisiana Workforce Commission, and the Department of Economic
16 Development, to study and make recommendations regarding the feasibility of establishing
17 the Advanced Placement Computer Science course as an equivalent advanced mathematics
18 course for purposes of satisfying high school graduation requirements and for determining
19 student eligibility to receive a Louisiana Taylor Opportunity Program for Students award.
20 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
21 state superintendent of education, the commissioner of higher education, the executive
22 director of the Louisiana Workforce Commission, and the secretary of the Department of
23 Economic Development.
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Jeanne C. Johnston.
DIGEST
SR 162 Original 2015 Regular Session Nevers
Requests the state Department of Education, in consultation with the Board of Regents, the
Louisiana Workforce Commission, and the Department of Economic Development, to study
and make recommendations regarding the feasibility of establishing the Advanced Placement
Computer Science course as an equivalent advanced mathematics course for purposes of
satisfying high school graduation requirements and for determining student eligibility to
receive a TOPS award.
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