Education Research Center Policy Brief - Disparities in Students' Experience of Computer Science - Exacerbated by Who Takes AP Exams

Oct 15, 2026

Texas students from traditionally marginalized race/ethnicity groups have less equitable learning experiences in high school computer science, with disparities appearing in both Advanced Placement (AP) CS exam participation and exam performance. Using Texas 2018–19 AP CS exam data and course enrollment records through the CAPE equity framework, the study analyzes differences by race/ethnicity. Results show Asian and White students take and pass AP CS exams at higher rates than Hispanic/Latino and Black peers, suggesting accountability structures and barriers such as cost may affect access and opportunity for college credit.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages4

Reading Time10 min

AccessFree to download

Executive Summary

What We Studied

Research Question

Data Sources and Analysis Approach

What We Discovered

Education Research Center POLICY BRIEF [www.texaserc.utexas.edu](www.texaserc.utexas.edu) Disparities in Students’ Experience of Computer Science are Exacerbated when Considering Who Does and Does Not Take Advanced Placement Exams Nicole D. Martin, Stephanie N. Baker, & Jayce R. Warner April 2024 Executive Summary Texas students from traditionally marginalized race/ethnicity groups are not having equitable learning experiences in highschool computer science (CS) courses. Our findings demonstrate disparities in both Advanced Placement (AP) CS exam taking and performance for students who belong to these groups and have important implications for whether students receive college credit for taking AP CS in high school. Specifically, we investigated differences in students’ learning experiences by analyzing AP CS test taking and passing rates, disaggregated by race/ethnicity. We found that Asian and White students both took AP CS exams at higher rates and passed AP CS exams at higher rates than their Hispanic/Latino and Black peers. Policymakers should consider how school accountability systems related to AP courses may have unintended consequences that prevent students from taking AP exams and how barriers, such as cost, may be preventing students from taking exams for the AP courses in which they are enrolled. What We Studied Equitably expanding K-12 computer science (CS) education is essential for preparing a diverse group of students to meet the growing computing workforce needs. Understanding the systemic inequities in CS education requires measuring equity at multiple levels. The CAPE framework (Fletcher & Warner, 2021) conceptualizes equity in terms of capacity for, access to, participation in, and experience of CS education. In the work represented here, we utilized the CAPE framework to better understand disparities in the student experience of CS courses. Many efforts to address equity in CS education center on increasing enrollment of students who belong to groups historically marginalized in CS (including Black and Hispanic/Latino students). However, increased participation does not mean that students are having positive experiences in CS (Margolis et al., 2012). Focusing on equity of experience is important for ensuring that curricula and instructional practices are culturally responsive, all students have CS selfefficacy and a sense of belonging in CS, and learning outcomes are favorable for all groups of students. Examining disparities in student learning outcomes using Advanced Placement (AP) test scores and passing rates, disaggregated by race/ethnicity and gender, has been a primary method for assessing equity of student experience in CS courses. One such analysis found that AP CS A exam passing rates for Hispanic/Latino (40%) and Black (39%) students in California were lower than those of their Asian and White peers (over 75%), highlighting inequities in CS learning experiences by race/ethnicity (Scott et al., 2019) . AP CS exam scores are a good starting place for understanding students’ learning experiences, but they do not provide a full picture. We extended prior work examining disparities in AP CS exam scores by also examining which students enrolled in AP CS courses actually took an AP CS exam and which did not. In this study, we exmained percentage of students enrolled in AP CS A and AP CS Principles (AP CS P) who took an AP CS exam and how those students performed on the exam, and we explored differences by student race/ethnicity. Research Question 1. What, if any, differences exist between subgroups of students based on race/ethnicity with respect to the percentage of AP CS course enrollees who take and pass an AP CS exam? How We Analyzed the Data We used Texas 2018-19 AP CS exam data from the College Board and course enrollment data from the Texas Education Research Center (ERC) to answer this question. Data from the College Board were publicly available and provided th

FAQs

Which student groups show higher AP CS exam participation and passing rates?

Asian and White students take and pass AP CS exams at higher rates than Hispanic/Latino and Black peers.

What data sources were used to analyze AP CS equity?

The study used Texas 2018–19 AP CS exam data from the College Board and Texas Education Research Center course enrollment data.

Why do the findings matter for college credit and policy?

The results indicate disparities in who takes AP CS exams and who passes, implying that accountability systems and barriers like cost may reduce access and affect the awarding of college credit.

Oct 15, 2026

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