New York, NY, June 26, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- [New York, NY] – [June 26] OpenSciEd, a leading provider of free, high-quality, open-source science curricula, today announced the release of its first-ever middle school computer science (CS) integrated unit—marking a major milestone in the organization's mission to ensure all students, regardless of background, have access to a science education that prepares them to succeed the modern world.
The new unit, 8.1 Contact Forces + CS, which is now available for teachers to download, is designed to eliminate barriers to CS learning by embedding it directly into science classrooms—so that all students have the opportunity to explore, engage with, and build critical computer science skills without needing to opt into elective courses.
“This is a major step forward for our work and our mission,” said Jim Ryan, Executive Director at OpenSciEd. “Releasing our first computer science unit underscores our commitment to innovation and excellence in science education. Every child deserves access to the skills that will shape the future—and with this new unit, we are one step closer to making that vision a reality.”
Persistent disparities in access to computer science continue to disproportionately impact students from historically underrepresented communities, particularly female, Black, and Hispanic/Latinx students. Research shows that early exposure to CS, especially in middle school, significantly increases the chances that students will pursue further CS coursework and careers. This new OpenSciEd unit addresses that need head-on, integrating computer science in ways that vary across lessons. To help educators and reviewers visualize the different expressions of STEM integration throughout the unit, the STEM Integration Framework, co-created by OpenSciEd’s Curriculum Innovations Manager, Tiffany Neill—serves as a reflective tool. While it was not used during unit development, it now supports understanding of how students engage with each STEM discipline to make sense of the phenomena.
“Adapting existing curricular materials, especially those that have been awarded NGSS-design badges, to include computer science learning has been no easy task. Without the efforts of our team, computer science education experts, and educators, our task would not have been successful,” said Nicole Vick, Curriculum Development Specialist II, Next Generation Science Storylines Team, School of Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University. “I am excited for the materials to be taken up by educators looking for a STEM curriculum. The feedback from field test teachers and students has shown us that incorporating computer science learning has not detracted from science sensemaking, but rather has enhanced it. The real-world interplay between science knowledge and computer science work, and vice versa, is front and center in the materials. I’m excited for students to experience how science and computer science can work together to positively impact society.”
The newly released unit uses OpenSciEd’s signature phenomena-based storyline approach, placing real-world problems and investigations at the center of instruction. In this unit, students explore how technology and coding can be used to solve environmental challenges, using physical computing tools like micro:bits to collect data, write code, and design solutions. By questioning what happens when objects collide in severe weather, students will develop innovative materials designed to withstand extreme weather conditions that can safeguard homes and communities.
This unit is supported by Amazon Future Engineer, Amazon’s computer science and STEM education program that helps students discover pathways to technology careers. It is aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA) Standards, and relevant state standards, ensuring students experience rigorous, integrated STEM learning.
“We know that real-world problems and scientific phenomena don’t stick to neat disciplinary boundaries,” said Dan Voss, Curriculum Development Specialist, Next Generation Science Storylines Team, School of Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University. “What I love about this curriculum is that it encourages students, teachers, and even us as developers to blur those boundaries in pursuit of sensemaking and problem-solving. The addition of computer science to already excellent science materials opens up all sorts of opportunities for students to pursue their ideas in new ways and take their investigations to interesting new places.”
This is just the beginning. Over the next five years, OpenSciEd will redesign five existing middle school science units to incorporate computer science learning, with a focus on topics such as climate science. These units will be redeveloped in collaboration with partners including Next Generation Science Storylines at Northwestern University, the Center to Support Excellence in Teaching (CSET) at Stanford’s Graduate School of Education, and Horizon Research, Inc.
OpenSciEd is proud and excited to share this unit with teachers. For more information, educators are encouraged to visit www.openscied.org to explore the first CS-integrated middle school unit and learn how OpenSciEd can help students understand how science and computer science combine to create innovative solutions to real-world problems.
About OpenSciEd:
OpenSciEd is a collaborative effort of leading science education researchers and educators, developing science learning materials aligned with the Framework for K-12 Science Education and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). OpenSciEd is committed to empowering educators and igniting a passion for science in all students by providing high quality, free, open education resources and transformative curriculum-based professional learning. For more information on OpenSciEd, visit www.openscied.org.
1 Code.org. 2023 State of Computer Science Education: Understanding Our National Imperative. https://code.org/assets/advocacy/stateofcs/2023_state_of_cs.pdf. Published 2023. Accessed June 24, 2025.
Erica Fraser OpenSciEd efraser@openscied.org