Transforming K-12 computing education: AP® computer science principles.

This critical perspective focuses on the new Advanced Placement® Computer Science Principles course and its place in the larger CS10K Initiative. CS Principles as defined by the College Board is a framework; several different, aligned curricula have been created, each with its own model of teacher professional development. Together, these courses have been piloted with hundreds of teachers and thousands of students. This perspective provides context for those efforts and discusses their status entering the critical year leading to the first official AP CS Principles courses (beginning in Fall 2016) and the first official AP CS Principles exam (Spring 2017).