The Role of Accountability Benchmarks to Increase Equity and Diversity in K-12 Computer Science Education

In March 2021, Illinois Governor Pritzker signed into law the Education and Workforce Equity Act (Public Act 101-0654) - an omnibus bill that included state-wide mandates to expand K-12 computer science (CS) education by requiring each high school district to offer students the opportunity to take at least one CS course. Because the bill did not include benchmarks for measuring equitable access and outcomes for all students, state-wide policies are open to interpretation and vulnerable to widening gaps for various student groups. Ongoing research efforts and partnerships are needed to ensure policies to increase access do not unintentionally harm students.