Technically Speaking: CS Everyone December Updates

Welcome to the second edition of the CS Everyone Center newsletter!



As 2025 comes to an end, we are grateful for the momentum we are building together in both computer science (CS) and artificial intelligence (AI) education. As we reflect on this past quarter, we want to extend a heartfelt thank-you to all the partners whose collaboration and commitment make this work possible. These partnerships have led to both new initiatives and growth of existing programs that help to make CS and AI learning more widely available to all learners and their teachers.

This quarter, a few of our initiatives include:


• Capacity Building: The Florida K-12 AI Education Task Force has continued to grow and scale efforts by updating our guidance, hosting webinars, and working with districts as they begin updating their AI-related policies. We recently added a Teaching Tips section to the website and are working on a family resource page!
  
• Engaging All Learners: The UDL4CS-2 project has recruited new cohorts of general and special education teachers from both Broward County Public Schools and Chicago Public Schools that will engage in a year-long professional learning community around meaningful participation of learners with disabilities in CS and robotics education.
  
• Teacher preparation: We are excited about the launch of microcredentials in AI education, CS education, and UDL4CS-2. These offer educators practical, flexible ways to deepen their skills and bring effective CS and AI education instructional practices into their classrooms. We’re also continuing to expand our program through the UF Teach CS undergraduate minor.
  
• Research and innovation: We continue to learn alongside teachers and districts about what it takes to make equitable CS and AI education a reality. For example, we are excited to announce a new research study, funded by Google, examining the impact of AI on K-12 teaching and learning in collaboration with the Lastinger Center for Learning and Miami-Dade County Public Schools.

Below you will read details about some of these initiatives. Thank you for being part of this growing community. Your dedication and collaboration continue to make this work possible and impactful.

The Florida K-12 AI Education Task Force has driven significant progress this quarter, focusing on responsible integration and widespread understanding of Artificial Intelligence (AI)  in our schools.

A major focus has been policy and safety. The Task Force completed key revisions to the flexible AI Guidance, placing student privacy and well-being at the forefront. We provided critical guidance to districts on how to update acceptable use policies to comply with federal regulations like FERPA, COPPA, and CIPA, as well as accessibility requirements (Section 508 and IDEA).

Our national recognition is growing! We were selected as one of only ten states to join the year-long EDSAFE AI Alliance Policy Lab.

To foster a statewide foundation of AI literacy, we launched monthly webinars discussing district IT oversight and teacher preparation, and we’re preparing for the upcoming Hour of AI. We also hosted a successful in-person meetup for Task Force members.

With more than half of Florida’s school districts now represented and new coalitions built with key educational partners (FSBA, FADDS, PAEC, FOIL), the Task Force is rapidly ensuring every corner of the state is ready for the future of AI in education. We also launched the GenAI Tool Adoption Survey to capture the current landscape.

Interested in joining the Florida K-12 AI Education Task Force?

Since the launch of UDL4CS-2 in January, we have made tremendous progress. This NSF project is a collaboration between the University of Florida (UF), the Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA), Broward County Public Schools (BCPS), and Chicago Public Schools (CPS) tackling a critical challenge: ensuring learners with disabilities have full access to computer science (CS) education. Our goal is to drive systems-level change and empower educators, both special and general education teachers, with high-quality professional development.

Dedicated teams of educators from BCPS and CPS are meeting monthly in a professional learning community. They're not just discussing theory; they're actively sharing and refining instructional strategies based on Universal Design for Learning (UDL), High Leverage Practices (HLPs) and accessibility principles. These sessions are vital for exploring research-based strategies to teach CS to support all learners, including those with disabilities.

The newest cohort members hit the ground running with intensive, hands-on professional development sessions in June, September, and October, led by the UF research team as well as teacher leaders across both cohorts. Teachers gained essential skills in computational thinking and learned how to apply cutting-edge practices to make CS instruction accessible and engaging for everyone. Returning cohort members have already shared inspiring success stories, proving that this model works and lighting the way for our newest educators.



We can't wait to share the outcomes as this exciting research partnership continues to transform CS education!

This fall, over 100 educators from Florida and major districts nationwide are strengthening their skills through two popular microcredential courses: Introduction to AI in K-12 Education and Introduction to UDL, HLP, and Accessibility in K-12 CS Education.

These self-paced courses are empowering teachers to navigate the future of learning responsibly. The AI microcredential focuses on the foundational concepts and ethical implications of AI, transforming how teachers approach this technology.

One participant shared their powerful "aha moment":

The Introduction to UDL, HLP, and Accessibility course equips educators with concrete strategies to ensure computer science is accessible and meaningful for all learners. These microcredentials are vital steps in building a high-quality and future-ready education system.

This semester, the UFTeach program has been actively engaging with pre-service educators, providing rich field experiences and support across several key courses.

In MAE2364: Exploration in Teaching Mathematics and Science, CS Everyone Center staff supported two lessons focusing on AI-integrated activities. This included both unplugged and plugged sessions, with interns facilitating engaging activities like Lego sorting and using tools such as Face Sensing Extension in Scratch Lab and Teachable Machines Application. Another section received support for AI-STEM integrated activities, where participants used Cubelets and Sphero Indi with local elementary students for a project themed around protecting sloths.

In SMT3664: Project-Based Instruction in STEM+CS, UFTeach played a significant role in fostering students’ growth. CS Everyone Center staff provided support for CS students’ lesson plan development and even presented as a speaker, sharing a real-world scenario—a travelogue with a cat—to propose potential customer needs for the PBI project. Finally, Research Scientist, Dr. Meize Guo, served as a judge for the final student PBI projects. Notably, four students in this course are currently completing their field experience in computer science classrooms, highlighting the program's commitment to CS education.

The Center has launched a major new research study, "AI for Education: Investigating Teacher Practices, Student Outcomes, and School Leadership in Miami-Dade County Public Schools," funded by Google. This project, funded by Google, is a collaborative effort between the CS Everyone Center, the Lastinger Center for Learning and Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS).

Over the next 14 months, this mixed-methods study will closely examine the implementation and impact of Google Gemini for Education in high school classrooms across M-DCPS, one of the largest districts piloting the tool. Our team will investigate how teachers adjust their instructional practices, the impact on student engagement and academic outcomes, and the administrative strategies successful school leaders use to drive AI adoption. This critical work intends to establish a research-based foundation for responsible and effective AI integration nationwide.

Our researchers spent the fall presenting cutting-edge work across the globe. A few notable presentations include:

• Dr. Maya Israel presented "Including Learners with Disabilities in CS and AI Education: A Research Practice Partnership Approach" at the Asia Pacific Computer Science Conference, and also participated on a panel at the BootUp Professional Development Inaugural Summit.
  
• Dr. Joanne Barrett contributed to the Frontiers in Education Conference with the paper, "Building on Teacher Perceptions to Help Bring AI to K-12 Classrooms."

• Dr. Michael J. Jonson spoke at the Micro:Bit Live Conference, offering a practical framework in his presentation, "For Your Consideration: A Teacher’s Guide for Evaluating and Choosing CS EdTech."
  
• Dr. Alexis Cobo was an invited speaker to the Alliance for Interdisciplinary Innovation in Computing (AiiCE) fall lecture for “A Conversation on Accessibility in Higher Education and Academic Publishing.”  

The Center continues to drive the national conversation on accessible and impactful AI and CS education! To read more about our Fall research activities, visit the News section of our website.