AP computer science principles draws more female, Black and Latino students than an older AP computer science course focused on coding, the College Board found in a study released Wednesday.

More than 29,700 female students took an AP computer science exam in 2017, a 135% increase from 2016 and a dramatic increase from the 2,600 female students that took the AP Computer Science exam ...

Jenny Brundin/ CPR News Adriana Ramírez (L), 16, and Laura García (R), 15, work on creating a code together in an AP Computer Science Principles class at Abraham Lincoln High School.

It typically has 50 to 80 students enrolled in AP Computer Science Principles each year. The last time a North Allegheny student scored a perfect AP Computer Science A score was in 2018, she said.

The College Board, the organization that runs the AP program, launched AP Computer Science Principles, or AP CSP, during the 2016-17 year, aiming to bring more Black, Latino, and female students ...