This new initiative, From Pathways to Progressions (P2P), will help participating districts integrate data science into their existing computational thinking (CT) pathways and core academic subjects such as math, science, social studies, and English Language Arts. This approach ensures that students build data skills over time, starting with foundational concepts in middle school and progressing toward advanced practices—such as data visualization, analysis, and machine learning—by the time they reach high school.
P2P builds on each district’s existing CT work to create practical, scalable learning progressions for data science from middle through high school. Rather than relying on one-off activities or tool-specific lessons, the team will work with district leaders and teachers to embed core data science skills across grade levels.
The comprehensive approach includes:
Each of the participating school districts will start by identifying where and how data science concepts already appear in their existing K-12 CT Pathways, and then will collaborate with peers to fill gaps and strengthen coherence. Middle school will be a key focus in the first phase, with expansion in both directions (elementary and high school) in later years.
A hallmark of the project is the district-to-district network model. As with their CT Pathways efforts, leaders and teachers from participating districts will meet regularly, visit one another’s schools, and share tools, lesson ideas, and strategies. This collaboration will not only speed up learning but also produce resources that other districts across the country can adapt and use.
Artificial intelligence and machine learning are shaping the economy, yet these technologies depend on a solid understanding of data, how it’s collected, analyzed, and interpreted. Without clear, districtwide plans for teaching data science, students often encounter it only in isolated activities or advanced electives, leaving many without essential skills.
Over the next two and a half years, From Pathways to Progressions will work with more than 400 schools serving over 415,000 students. By integrating data science into everyday learning and connecting it to computational thinking, the project will help prepare a new generation of students to participate fully in an AI-driven world. All resources and findings will ultimately be shared publicly at no cost, so that districts nationwide can benefit.
Want to learn more? Please join us on Tuesday, Nov. 4, for the Elevating Innovation virtual conference sponsored by Digital Promise and Verizon. The year’s theme is “Thinking in an AI World” and the 2 p.m. ET session “Data Science for All: Understanding K-12 Data Science Progressions as Foundational AI” will present a more detailed overview of the work.
