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Submission + - Failing CS Grades Soar at UC Berkeley as Professors See Greater AI Usage

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: "The percentage of failing grades in multiple UC Berkeley computer science classes in spring 2026 is significantly higher than past semesters and marks a departure from the department’s grading guidelines, reports The Daily Californian's Litong Deng. "Instructors point to students’ increased reliance on AI, lack of mathematical preparedness and understaffing as potential contributing factors. According to Berkeleytime, 35.3% of CS 10 students and 10.6% of CS 61A students received F’s in spring 2026. In spring 2025 and spring 2024, the percentage of F’s did not exceed 10% for either class. The electrical engineering and computer sciences department’s grading guidelines state that 7% of students in lower division courses, including CS 10 and CS 61A, should receive D’s and F’s."

"UC Berkeley teaching professor Dan Garcia taught both CS 10, 'The Beauty and Joy of Computing,' and CS 61A, 'The Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs,' in spring 2026. Garcia believes the 'primary driver' of these abnormally high failing rates is due to a 'vast increase in academic dishonesty' due to students’ usage of large language models, such as Claude, ChatGPT and Google Gemini."

The report came just a day after tech-backed nonprofit Code.org, which bills itself as "the leading provider of K-12 AI and CS education curriculum across the globe", rebranded itself to CodeAI, solidifying its shift to AI education. "This is the generation that will set the terms for how AI is used," said Code.org CEO Karim Meghji in a press release. "Some are being taught to understand it, direct it, question it, and create with it. Most are not. That's the gap CodeAI exists to close."

Submission + - R.I.P. Code.org (2013–2026)

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: This week saw tech-backed K-12 CS education nonprofit Code.org rebrand itself as CodeAI (press release), solidifying its shift to AI education more than a decade after it launched in 2013 with the belief "that every student should learn the basics of computer programming." Of the AI rebranding, Code.org Founder and Chairman of The Board Hadi Partovi explained, "We have a responsibility to prepare the next generation for the biggest change In society since the invention of public education."

Following the announcement, members of the Code.org Advocacy Coalition were informed in a conference call that the nine-year-old coalition was being sunsetted immediately. Members will be asked to decide if they want to join a new CodeAI Advocacy Coalition, which will be "bringing in new AI focused entities that will help us advance this mission", or if they are "not in line with the direction that CodeAI is heading" and are "not going to be part of the new advocacy coalition." Much like their tech giant donors, the message sent was it's the AI way or the highway.

Interestingly, the pivot from CS education to AI literacy comes amid reports that blamed increased reliance on AI for causing more than 35% of UC Berkeley students to fail an entry-level CS course described as "a gentle but thorough introduction to computer science," when previously the failing rate was typically 7%.

Submission + - Code.org Rebrands to CodeAI, Disbands Its K-12 CS Education Advocacy Coalition

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: "The Code.org Advocacy Coalition is growing the movement to make Computer Science a fundamental part of the K-12 education," explained tech-backed nonprofit Code.org in 2018. Eight years later, that mission — which began in 2013 — has changed. On Monday, Code.org rebranded as CodeAI (press release), solidifying its shift to AI education. And on Tuesday, members of the Code.org Advocacy Coalition were rounded up for a conference call and informed that their 100+ organization group was being disbanded and from here on in it'll be the AI Way or the Highway for current members.

From the transcript: "We're now at a crossroads. AI is completely transforming all of society, including education and especially computer science. In the past, the focus of computer science was coding. Today, the focus is AI. [...] Preparing every student for the age of AI requires a broader vision. Starting today, Code.org is CodeAI. [...] We're moving into the next chapter. So, just to be clear, we are sunsetting the Code.org Advocacy Coalition. This will be our last meeting of the Code.org advocacy coalition. We will be standing up the CodeAI advocacy coalition. [...] [Expect an email] giving you a chance to say 'Our organization is in line with the direction that Code AI is heading and we want to be part of those advocacy efforts. But it also gives your organization a chance to say, 'You know what? We're not in line with the direction that CodeAI is heading, so we're not going to be part of the new advocacy coalition.' [...] We are also going to be focused on bringing in new AI focused entities that will help us advance this mission."

Or, to paraphrase Ken Kesey, "You're either on the K-12 AI literacy bus or off the K-12 AI literacy bus."

Submission + - Code.org Rebrands as CodeAI, Solidifying its Shift to AI Education

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: The rise of AI has been changing the focus of Code.org for the past two years. And on Tuesday, GeekWire reported the tech-backed K-12 CS education nonprofit fully acknowledged the shift and rebranded as CodeAI.

Code.org founder Hadi Partovi — who handed off his Code.org CEO role earlier this year citing the upending of CS by AI and recently revealed to 60 Minutes and USA Today that he has for the past two years been the CEO of stealth piano school startup Payam Music, which he plans to expand nationally "leveraging my experience scaling CodeAI to 100 million students" — explained the rebranding in a LinkedIn post:

"Code.org is changing its name. 13 years ago, Code.org launched with a simple idea: every student should learn computer science — to learn how technology works and how to create it — not just how to use it. After more than 2 billion hours of learning and 190 countries later, the focus of computer science has moved from coding to AI. The technology has changed and so has students needs. AI is reshaping every sector and every part of daily life. The question isn't whether students will live in an AI world — they already do. It's whether they can understand it well enough to navigate it."

"Today, Code.org enters its next chapter as CodeAI [TM]. The mission — every student, every classroom, regardless of zip code — needs a broader vision. They need digital fluency: the ability to understand AI, direct it, question it, and create with it — built on the foundations of computer science, AI science, and data science. We have the curriculum, the teacher training, the frameworks, and the research to do this at scale. AI Discoveries and AI Foundations are free and in classrooms now. The K-12 digital sciences pathway is expanding. The goal is a generation with agency over the systems shaping their lives — prepared to shape the work, civic life, relationships, and meaning that come after. Welcome to CodeAI."

Submission + - Maryland Governor Signs K-12 AI Bill Under Microsoft's Watchful Eye

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: "Thank you, Gov. Wes Moore, for signing SB 720 into law yesterday!" exclaimed Microsoft Sr. Director of Education and Workforce Policy Allyson Knox in a LinkedIn post celebrating the passage of the Artificial Intelligence Ready Schools Act. "Microsoft was proud to support this legislation, and I was honored to represent the company at yesterday’s bill signing at the Maryland State House. This law accomplishes the following: 1) Establishes statewide AI guidance for schools ... 2) Requires every district to have an AI plan ... 3) Builds teacher capacity and professional learning ... 4) Promotes AI literacy for students ... 5) Creates tools to evaluate AI technologies ... 6) Establishes a statewide AI Education Collaborative." At the same bill-signing ceremony, Gov. Moore paradoxically also signed into law the Phone-Free Schools Act, "prohibiting the use of certain electronic communication devices by a student during the academic school day."

Knox reports up to Microsoft President Brad Smith, who last July told Code.org CEO Hadi Partovi it was time for the tech-backed K-12 CS education nonprofit to "switch hats" from coding to AI as Microsoft announced its new $4 billion Microsoft Elevate initiative to advance AI education. The Maryland State Department of Education is one of many government agencies that are participating in Code.org's Microsoft-advised TeachAI initiative. Code.org also took to social media to celebrate the Maryland win, proclaiming that "Maryland just made AI and CS Education the law."

Interestingly, Maryland's commitment to K-12 AI comes in the same week as the NY Times reports a $22.5 million AI partnership to 'bring AI into the classroom' struck last July between the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) union, Microsoft, and OpenAI has hit a bump in the road as the AFT urges schools to curb AI chatbots and screen time, recommending 'no screens' at all for those in second grade or younger, and no AI chatbots for students in elementary school. AFT president Randi Weingarten said that the union was negotiating safety and privacy standards for AI use in schools with 'our partners in the AI academy,' and that Microsoft, OpenAI and Anthropic had agreed in principle to those standards. "We’re willing to walk away from the funding that we receive here if we don’t get the safety and privacy," Weingarten said.

Submission + - Teachers' Union Urges Schools to Curb AI Chatbots and Screen Time

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: The New York Times reports the $22.5 million AI partnership to 'bring AI into the classroom' struck last July between the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) union, Microsoft, and OpenAI has hit a bump in the road as the AFT urges schools to curb AI chatbots and screen time, recommending 'no screens' at all for those in second grade or younger, and no AI chatbots for students in elementary school.

The union’s effort reflects a backlash among parents and educators against heavy use of school-issued laptops and apps. Some parents and nonprofit children’s groups are also pushing back against campaigns by tech giants like Google and OpenAI to spread their AI products in schools.

This week, AFT president Randi Weingarten said that the union was negotiating safety and privacy standards for AI use in schools with 'our partners in the AI academy,' and that Microsoft, OpenAI and Anthropic had agreed in principle to those standards. “We’re being transparent,” Weingarten said, adding that "We’re willing to walk away from the funding that we receive here if we don’t get the safety and privacy."

Submission + - Code.org Co-Founder Pivots From K-12 CS and AI Education to Piano Lessons

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: Not long after pivoting his tech-backed nonprofit Code.org's mission from K-12 CS education to include AI literacy late last year, Code.org Co-Founder Hadi Partovi announced he was officially stepping down as CEO of the tech-backed nonprofit, explaining: "For the past two years, I have been operating primarily as Chairman while Cameron handled CEO responsibilities. With Karim’s appointment, my title will be updated to better reflect my contributions and commitment to this organization as Chairman of the Board."

On Sunday, a CBS 60 Minutes segment and USA Today interview revealed Partovi's new passion project has been Payam Music, a small for-profit piano school that Partovi aims to take national as its President and CEO with investors including Mark Cuban, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi, and Dropbox CEO Drew Houston.

In a Sunday LinkedIn post, Partovi wrote: "I have a big career announcement: I’m taking my experience teaching computer science to hundreds of millions and connecting it to my lifelong love of piano. Announcing Payam Music: the first nationwide piano school, with a new way of teaching—the Payam Method—endorsed by Hans Zimmer and showcased on 60 MINUTES and USA TODAY. With Payam Music, students learn faster, they outperform traditional methods, and they even learn to write their own music. Every year our students rank nationally for their composition and creativity. If you’re worried about kids’ obsession with screens and social media, the solution is to give them a new obsession: piano. Proven over 10 years, the learning outcomes of the Payam Method are extraordinary, and so is the team behind it. Besides Hans Zimmer, we’re announcing the support of iconic business leaders including Mark Cuban, Dara Khosrowshahi, Michelle Zatlyn, Drew Houston, and many others. Payam Music is available in cities around the US and expanding rapidly. Our schools teach 1-on-1 lessons, in person and even online. We have limited spots, so if you or your child want to learn piano, sign up now! And if we don’t have a school near you, join our wait list, we’re growing fast."

Submission + - Of Course They Booed

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: In Of Course They Booed, Audrey Watters takes a look at the chorus of boos greeting college commencement speakers who heralded the glorious AI future students are poised to step into:

And perhaps it’s a little ironic that this graduating class, a group that we've been told time and time again has spent the last four years using ChatGPT to cheat their way through college, would display such sour sentiment towards "AI." But as most commencement speakers seem duty-bound to repeat, graduation marks the entry into adulthood; it is "the beginning of your life"; "the future is now" – that sort of thing. And just these students are now officially adults, they’re being told a very different story: that there really is no future. There are no jobs. And whatever thing they might have learned to do or learned to love in college, whatever career they might have believed they were preparing for, "AI" is going to destroy all of that. No wonder they boo.

But the growing pushback against "AI," and the growing pushback against ed-tech more generally, is not simply a rejection of technology. These efforts are, as Astra Taylor and Saul Levin recently argued in The Guardian, a rejection of the profoundly anti-democratic practices that have pushed technologies into all aspects of our lives without our consent and often in the face of our outright opposition. These technologies have been marketed to us as solutions to all sorts of social problems — and have done so, in no small part, by bypassing and undermining the very public sphere in which debate and discussion can take place: schools, libraries, the arts, the media. The adoption of education technology, "AI" or otherwise, has been anti-democratic in practices both big and small. Despite all the talk of progressive education and ed-tech, it has been experienced as something else entirely. Throughout the country for the past few decades Gates (via the Gates Foundation), other billionaire philanthropists, and giant companies have shaped education funding and policy through a combination of technology and testing.

At one point, perhaps, people were willing to welcome devices into schools, into the classroom. They believed the stories, not just that "this is the future," but that future meant something better for everyone. “Access” signaled equality. But as the tech billionaires have embraced authoritarianism and inequality, and as their apocalyptic rhetoric about not just the "end of work," but quite literally the end of the world grows louder and louder — all while they amass more wealth than anyone in history — it is quite apparent that their promises about the future do not include us. Their vision of future does not make any space or allowance for our children to choose their own futures.

Submission + - Musk v. Altman Verdict: Victory for OpenAI and Microsoft, Not Vindication

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: Let's play Jeopardy! A. OpenAI, Sam Altman, Microsoft. OJ, the Golden State Killer, Bill Cosby, Jeffrey Epstein, Harvey Weinstein. Q. Who are beneficiaries of statute of limitations laws? (source: ChatGPT).

For Superman fans, yesterday's Musk v. Altman verdict in favor of OpenAI may conjure up memories of the 1958 Adventures of Superman episode The Mysterious Cube, in which a fugitive hides inside an impenetrable cube for seven years so that he can legally escape prosecution once the limitations period for presumptive death expires.

A press release celebrating OpenAI's legal team win in Musk v. Altman reminds us that the win was a victory for OpenAI, Altman, and Microsoft — not vindication. From the press release: "After three weeks of trial, the jury deliberated for about ninety minutes before finding that both OpenAI and Microsoft had proven their statute of limitations defense for all claims. Because the Defense prevailed on the statute of limitations, which was the very first question on the verdict form, the jury did not need to consider the merits of Musk’s claims. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers adopted the jury’s findings and promptly dismissed all of Musk’s claims from the bench."

Submission + - Code.org, Microsoft Celebrate Georgia's New CS + AI Graduation Requirement

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: From tech-bankrolled nonprofit Code.org's Tuesday LinkedIn post boasting that Georgia just made AI and CS education the law: "Georgia is now our 14th CS [high school] graduation requirement state, and the 3rd to legislate AI as part of that requirement. Governor Brian Kemp signed SB 179 into law today. Years of work. Countless conversations. Real results. [...] And a special thank you to the Technology Association of Georgia and Microsoft, whose partnership was instrumental in making this happen. [...] AI and CS education for every student. One state at a time."

Microsoft State Government Affairs employees threw the partnership love right back at Code.org with their own LinkedIn posts, saying: "At Microsoft, we’re proud to support this milestone. SB 179 positions Georgia as a national leader in workforce innovation, expanding access to computer science and AI education to build a durable, diverse talent pipeline aligned with the demands of a modern digital economy. This approach reflects Microsoft’s commitment to advancing responsible, transparent, and secure AI, and reinforces the importance of early education in shaping how the next generation develops and uses technology. Grateful for the leadership and partnership that made this possible."

The Bill specifies that "grants shall be provided to eligible entities to deliver professional development programs for teachers providing instruction in computer science courses and content," explaining that "'High-quality professional learning providers' means institutions of higher education in this state, local school systems, nonprofit organizations, or private entities," which would seem to include Code.org, Code.org's higher education Regional Partners, and Microsoft.

While the legislation celebration may begin in 2026, the Bill notes the Class of 2037 will be the first whose graduation is impacted by the new requirement: "Each local board of education shall require all students who will graduate in 2037 or later, as a condition of graduation from high school, to complete a course in computer science or a career, technical, and agricultural education (CTAE) course embedded with computer science which meets the requirements provided in subparagraph (B) of this paragraph".

Submission + - Will Elon Win His Case Against OpenAI? Predictions?

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: With the nine-person jury set to begin deliberations Monday in Musk v. Altman, this week's GeekWire Podcast discusses the trial, its potential outcome, and how the verdict may profoundly impact the larger nonprofit world.

"So, here's my prediction," opined GeekWire's Todd Bishop. "They're going to find that OpenAI did in fact have a breach of charitable trust of the nonprofit mission. I think it's less clear that they're going to say that Brockman and Altman unjustly enriched themselves. I'm not sure of that. And I'm pretty sure that Microsoft is going to get off without any issues based on what I heard. I think that's the way it's going to go. [...] So, if somebody were to force me to go on to some kind of prediction market and put my life savings down, that's how I would do it. [...] Ultimately you can think what you want of these people, but it comes down to the law and whether the jury finds that the facts meet the specifics of the law and the jury instructions that the judge gives to them. I think witness credibility is also really significant here. And I think one of the key questions is whom do they believe or disbelieve more, Elon or Sam? And I think that's a very difficult choice to make. [laughter] It's going to be very interesting to see how it plays out."

So, if you were a betting person, who would your money be on?

Submission + - Autosave or Manual Save, That is the Question

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: Whether you're editing documents or code — locally or in the cloud, single-user or in collaboration with others — autosave has increasingly become the default and sometimes the only behavior rather than manual saving. Which may be a plus for those who forget to periodically save their work, but a minus to those who wish to intentionally control when and where their files are saved.

Interesting, there doesn't seem to be much in the way of published empirical studies to explain how Miclyrosoft, Google, Apple, and others arrived at the decision that autosave-as-default for the masses was the wiser choice (a skeptic might point to cloud architecture limitations, unstable software & infrastructure, reduced technical support costs, and industry herd behavior as deciding factors).

In the absence of rigorous, peer-reviewed studies, which is the lesser of the two evils for your work: autosave, and run the risk of silently preserving inadvertent mistakes, or manual save, and run the risk of silently discarding changes? And, with increased emphasis on risk/governance and collaborative document sharing, any thoughts on why documents aren't typically opened in View instead of Edit mode to reduce the risk of inadvertent changes?

So, is Ctrl-S a bug and/or a feature?

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