Data Science Challenge Winners
This past school year, we piloted our first ever After the AP Data Science Challenge. The project challenged AP Statistics and AP Computer Science students to predict which colleges "pay off" the most, using a big dataset from the Department of Education. Students used R code and state of the art methods - including machine learning models - to accomplish the task.
Before the challenge began, there were doubts about whether students would choose to pursue the project - especially after two exhausting weeks of AP testing. However, just 24 hours after opening the challenge, student demand grew so large that it started outpacing our server capacities! In response, we upped the server space, allowing us to accommodate 2,500 students in the pilot. Then, by the end of the school year, over 75% of them completed all four modules of the challenge.
It's clear that there's a pent-up demand for learning about more modern tools (i.e. not the TI-84) and more modern methods (i.e. not random digit tables). It's also clear that, when given the right materials, high school teachers and students are more than capable of doing it.
So, without further ado, we'd like to congratulate the student winners of the After The AP Data Science Challenge! Click the button below to see DS4E's blog post and listing of the winners (note: winners are listed at the end of the blog post):
We'd like to give a huge shoutout to our partners who helped make this project possible: Data Science 4 Everyone, CourseKata, and NC State Data Science Academy. In addition, we'd like to give an even bigger shoutout to the teachers who ran this pilot with their students. There were kinks to work out with the pilot, but your excitement, patience, collaboration, and feedback made it all happen. The amazing student results speak to your great efforts - we can't thank you enough.
Soon, we'll release a full report of the feedback we received in the pilot and adjustments we're making for next year. Yes, you read that right: the data science challenge is officially returning next year - and it's going to be even bigger and better than this year's offering. Keep your eye on this email list, especially in Spring 2024, for more info.
Let's skew it!