Summary

Washington HB 1472 (Open States or Washington Legislature) requires high schools to approve AP computer science courses to be counted towards math and science requirements for graduation.

Legislative Analysis

Even though nearly 65,000 Washington students enrolled in high school computer science courses in 2011-2012, fewer than 1200 enrolled in AP computer science courses. This bill seeks to remove any institutional perception that computer science is not treated as an academic subject and expand access to computer science courses.

This bill requires boards of directors to approve AP computer science courses as equivalent to high school mathematics or science.

For AP computer science to qualify as a math-based quantitative course, a student must be concurrently enrolled in or have successfully completed algebra II. The bill requires the school district to denote this qualification on a student’s transcript.
This bill is an important step towards including the necessary skill sets, such as coding, in a student’s standards academic career and ensuring that each student has incentive and receives credit for acquiring 21st Century skills.

Legislative History

Detailed Vote History: Legiscan |  Open States
Approved by Governor Jay Inslee on 5/14/2013