Computer Science

Computer Science at Chesapeake Public Schools

Chesapeake Public Schools has a mission to promote educational excellence by engaging all students in meaningful and innovative learning experiences that empower them to successfully fulfill their life’s purpose. In that mission, CPS has prioritized the development of Computer Science learning opportunities for all grade levels. The K-12 Computer Science curriculum offers opportunities for students and teachers to address authentic, real-world problems with creative and innovative solutions. Students enrolled in our Computer Science courses will develop real-world skills and better understand how computer science fits into a wide range of domains in the world around us.

Envisioning our Future

Empowered by the GoVirginia grant, Chesapeake will provide professional development for teachers, create a database of curriculum and procedures for the integration of computer science activities and computational thinking into core subject areas, and develop guidelines for building partnerships with science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) related companies to foster experiential learning opportunities. The district will also hire additional CTE teachers to teach new courses that empower students to engage in open-ended problem-solving activities such as designing, building, programming, and testing robots to do various tasks. Students will also have opportunities to develop computer science skills with “unplugged” activities and block-based coding and progress toward text-based languages such as Python, Java, and JavaScript in the lower grades. At the high school level, students will engage in experiential learning opportunities with a real-world industry mentor at the high school level during an internship. Each school division will host at least three STEM internship fairs to support these placements.

History of Computer Science at CPS

August 2019: Chesapeake Public Schools was admitted to the League of Innovative Schools, a national coalition of forward-thinking K-12 school districts organized by Digital Promise. Digital Promise a nonprofit organization with the mission to accelerate innovation in education and improve the opportunity to learn for all through technology and research. Through our League membership, we are proud to offer high-quality educational experiences to our students.

September 2019: Chesapeake Public Schools launched an elementary school STEAM initiative that is designed to expose young students to coding and programming, beginning in kindergarten. The STEAM initiative is designed to connect visual arts activities to concepts related to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

2019: In December 2019, GOVirginia awarded a $2.4 million grant to the Loudoun Education Foundation for the creation of the Virginia K-12 Computer Science Pipeline program in Chesapeake Public Public Schools (CPS) and Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS).

2020: Mrs. Lori Martin was hired to serve the district as the STEAM/CTE Coordinator.

2020: CodeVA Selected Truitt & Camelot for the CS Ready Schools Program. CodeVA’s CS Ready Schools program has a purpose to foster a collaborative model in schools – and ultimately school divisions – that supports and sustains a computer science education ecosystem.

2020: Development of Computer Science courses for middle school students.

2021: Chesapeake held its first Virtual Internship Fair with over 65 students, 12 businesses, and a resume-writing workshop with Google.

2021: Hiring of ten middle school computer science teachers.

2021: Students begin internship programs.

2021: Summer enrichment programs included Code Beats (in partnership with VCU), rising 5th-grade Computer Science, Girls Who Code, Coding and Robotics, and ten middle school Cybersecurity Externships.

2022: Computer Science Concepts courses in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade were implemented in the 2021-2022 School year. Summer enrichment programs continued in rising 5th-grade Computer Science, Girls Who Code, Coding and Robotics, and ten middle school Cybersecurity Externships.

Computer Science Advisory Board