Cara Tang, Cindy S. Tucker, Elizabeth K. Hawthorne, C. Servin, Teresa Moore
In 2015, under the auspices of the ACM Education Board the Committee for Computing Education in Community Colleges (CCECC) began an effort to update the ACM Computing Curricula 2009: Guidelines for Associate-Degree Transfer Curriculum in Computer Science with inclusion of contemporary cybersecurity concepts. To this end, the CCECC established a task force of community college educators to review the ACM/IEEE Computer Science Curricula 2013 (CS2013) and identify foundational material in CS2013 that is appropriate for the first two years of a computer science education. To further inform the guidance, the CCECC administered surveys to a global audience of computer science educators to solicit input related to CS2013 knowledge areas (KAs) and knowledge units (KUs) and on cybersecurity topics, which are appropriate for associate-degree computer science transfer programs. The guidance has been through two rounds of public review and comment
{"title":"Curricular Guidance for Associate-Degree Transfer Programs in Computer Science with Contemporary Cybersecurity Concepts (Abstract Only)","authors":"Cara Tang, Cindy S. Tucker, Elizabeth K. Hawthorne, C. Servin, Teresa Moore","doi":"10.1145/3017680.3022398","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1145/3017680.3022398","url":null,"abstract":"In 2015, under the auspices of the ACM Education Board the Committee for Computing Education in Community Colleges (CCECC) began an effort to update the ACM Computing Curricula 2009: Guidelines for Associate-Degree Transfer Curriculum in Computer Science with inclusion of contemporary cybersecurity concepts. To this end, the CCECC established a task force of community college educators to review the ACM/IEEE Computer Science Curricula 2013 (CS2013) and identify foundational material in CS2013 that is appropriate for the first two years of a computer science education. To further inform the guidance, the CCECC administered surveys to a global audience of computer science educators to solicit input related to CS2013 knowledge areas (KAs) and knowledge units (KUs) and on cybersecurity topics, which are appropriate for associate-degree computer science transfer programs. The guidance has been through two rounds of public review and comment","PeriodicalId":344382,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of the 2017 ACM SIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education","volume":"13 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"131397462","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Good oral communication skills are essential for success in the workplace. Burge [3] recently highlighted the need to create a curriculum-wide program emphasizing communication skills. We have implemented a curriculum that provides communication skills instruction and practice at each level of the computer science major. Here we present a description of the coursework emphasizing formal presentation and small group communication skills. We also share findings from a survey of alumni showing their perception of communication preparation. Even in our program that provides significant opportunities for communication skill development, the majority of alumni felt that additional instruction should be integrated into the major curriculum.
{"title":"A Curriculum Model Featuring Oral Communication Instruction and Practice","authors":"Karen Anewalt, Jennifer A. Polack","doi":"10.1145/3017680.3017775","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1145/3017680.3017775","url":null,"abstract":"Good oral communication skills are essential for success in the workplace. Burge [3] recently highlighted the need to create a curriculum-wide program emphasizing communication skills. We have implemented a curriculum that provides communication skills instruction and practice at each level of the computer science major. Here we present a description of the coursework emphasizing formal presentation and small group communication skills. We also share findings from a survey of alumni showing their perception of communication preparation. Even in our program that provides significant opportunities for communication skill development, the majority of alumni felt that additional instruction should be integrated into the major curriculum.","PeriodicalId":344382,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of the 2017 ACM SIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education","volume":"31 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"132713045","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Ideally, we would always be able to write clear, concise programs and have them run quickly. One major impediment is the redundancy which can occur in direct recursive solutions. In some cases, this means writing a loop even if the programmer is more comfortable thinking in terms of recursion. In other cases the impact on code is even more dramatic, and in these cases most programmers choose to sacrifice clarity in exchange for improved asymptotic complexity. There exist program transformation techniques that would allow us to write idiomatic recursive programs without losing efficiency. One such transformation is the "tupling" transformation, which can and has been implemented as an automatic compiler optimization. This transformation is, however, only applicable to a narrow class of problems. We are exploring related transformations, such as tabulation, which can helpfully be applied to a wider class of recursive programs, and attempting to answer the question of when these transformation techniques are most useful to programmers aiming to balance program clarity with performance.
{"title":"Recursive Convergence","authors":"Amy MacDonough","doi":"10.1145/3017680.3022457","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1145/3017680.3022457","url":null,"abstract":"Ideally, we would always be able to write clear, concise programs and have them run quickly. One major impediment is the redundancy which can occur in direct recursive solutions. In some cases, this means writing a loop even if the programmer is more comfortable thinking in terms of recursion. In other cases the impact on code is even more dramatic, and in these cases most programmers choose to sacrifice clarity in exchange for improved asymptotic complexity. There exist program transformation techniques that would allow us to write idiomatic recursive programs without losing efficiency. One such transformation is the \"tupling\" transformation, which can and has been implemented as an automatic compiler optimization. This transformation is, however, only applicable to a narrow class of problems. We are exploring related transformations, such as tabulation, which can helpfully be applied to a wider class of recursive programs, and attempting to answer the question of when these transformation techniques are most useful to programmers aiming to balance program clarity with performance.","PeriodicalId":344382,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of the 2017 ACM SIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education","volume":"86 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"131897283","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Anita DeWitt, Julia Fay, Madeleine Goldman, E. Nicolson, Linda Oyolu, Lukas Resch, Jovan Martinez Saldaña, Soulideth Sounalath, Tyler Williams, Kathryn Yetter, Elizabeth Zak, N. Brown, Samuel A. Rebelsky
Computer science, particularly in the United States, continues to suffer from underrepresentation by women and students of color. Increasingly, evidence suggests that we need to approach student perceptions of computer science and self perceptions of "who does computer science" before college, at ages in which students have not yet formed difficult-to-change viewpoints. In an effort to address underrepresented groups in computing, as well as to change common, stereotypical perceptions of what a computer scientist is, we ran a pilot summer camp that drew students from our local community and sought to increase their self-efficacy and change the way they conceptualized Computer Science. In designing the course, we leveraged approaches that have shown success at the college level - particularly Computing for Social Good and Media Computation - to introduce students to important concepts. The camp was structured as a week-long, full-day camp in one of the Computer Science department's computer-equipped classrooms, We taught programming in Processing to 28 rising 5th-9th grade students, focusing on artistic aspects and real-world inspiration. In this paper, we report on the project (both successes and failures) and the effects the project had on students' self-efficacy and attitudes towards computer science. We also provide some recommendations for others planning to offer similar camps.
{"title":"Arts Coding for Social Good: A Pilot Project for Middle-School Outreach","authors":"Anita DeWitt, Julia Fay, Madeleine Goldman, E. Nicolson, Linda Oyolu, Lukas Resch, Jovan Martinez Saldaña, Soulideth Sounalath, Tyler Williams, Kathryn Yetter, Elizabeth Zak, N. Brown, Samuel A. Rebelsky","doi":"10.1145/3017680.3017795","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1145/3017680.3017795","url":null,"abstract":"Computer science, particularly in the United States, continues to suffer from underrepresentation by women and students of color. Increasingly, evidence suggests that we need to approach student perceptions of computer science and self perceptions of \"who does computer science\" before college, at ages in which students have not yet formed difficult-to-change viewpoints. In an effort to address underrepresented groups in computing, as well as to change common, stereotypical perceptions of what a computer scientist is, we ran a pilot summer camp that drew students from our local community and sought to increase their self-efficacy and change the way they conceptualized Computer Science. In designing the course, we leveraged approaches that have shown success at the college level - particularly Computing for Social Good and Media Computation - to introduce students to important concepts. The camp was structured as a week-long, full-day camp in one of the Computer Science department's computer-equipped classrooms, We taught programming in Processing to 28 rising 5th-9th grade students, focusing on artistic aspects and real-world inspiration. In this paper, we report on the project (both successes and failures) and the effects the project had on students' self-efficacy and attitudes towards computer science. We also provide some recommendations for others planning to offer similar camps.","PeriodicalId":344382,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of the 2017 ACM SIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education","volume":"94 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"124249265","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
L. Pollock, C. Mouza, Amanda Czik, Alexis Little, Debra J. Coffey, Joan Buttram
The CS for All initiative places increased emphasis on the need to prepare K-12 teachers of computer science (CS). Professional development (PD) programs continue to be an essential mechanism for preparing in-service teachers who have little formal background in CS content, skills, and teaching pedagogy. While increased investment by federal agencies and the industry has raised the number of CS PD opportunities for K-12 teachers, there has been limited study of how teachers apply what they learn back in their classroom. This paper describes an in-depth qualitative study through interviews of 28 elementary, middle and high school teachers who participated in summer PD in preparation of teaching a full CS course or integrate CS modules into existing courses (e.g., science, engineering, business, technology, etc). The interview protocol focused on educators' involvement in the PD, specific skills and strategies they learned, whether and how they have been able to apply these new skills in the classroom, what facilitated or impeded this application, and how students have responded.
{"title":"From Professional Development to the Classroom: Findings from CS K-12 Teachers","authors":"L. Pollock, C. Mouza, Amanda Czik, Alexis Little, Debra J. Coffey, Joan Buttram","doi":"10.1145/3017680.3017739","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1145/3017680.3017739","url":null,"abstract":"The CS for All initiative places increased emphasis on the need to prepare K-12 teachers of computer science (CS). Professional development (PD) programs continue to be an essential mechanism for preparing in-service teachers who have little formal background in CS content, skills, and teaching pedagogy. While increased investment by federal agencies and the industry has raised the number of CS PD opportunities for K-12 teachers, there has been limited study of how teachers apply what they learn back in their classroom. This paper describes an in-depth qualitative study through interviews of 28 elementary, middle and high school teachers who participated in summer PD in preparation of teaching a full CS course or integrate CS modules into existing courses (e.g., science, engineering, business, technology, etc). The interview protocol focused on educators' involvement in the PD, specific skills and strategies they learned, whether and how they have been able to apply these new skills in the classroom, what facilitated or impeded this application, and how students have responded.","PeriodicalId":344382,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of the 2017 ACM SIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education","volume":"144 1 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"123149406","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Shelly Engelman, Brian Magerko, Tom McKlin, M. Miller, Doug Edwards, Jason Freeman
STEAM education is a method for driving student engagement in STEM topics through personal expression, creativity and aesthetics. EarSketch, a collaborative and authentic learning tool which introduces students to programming through music remixing, has previously been shown to enhance student engagement and intent to persist in computing. The goal of EarSketch is to broaden participation in computing through a thickly authentic learning environment that has personal and real world relevance in both computational and music domains. This mixed methods study extends previous work by 1) using a newly- developed instrument to assess creativity and 2) testing a theory of change model that provides an explanatory framework for increasing student engagement in STEAM. The results suggest that students who used EarSketch express statistically significant gains in computing attitudes and creativity. Furthermore, a series of multiple regression analyses found that a creative learning environment, fueled by a meaningful and personally relevant EarSketch curriculum, drives improvements in students' attitudes and intent to persist in computing. This work makes a significant contribution to computer science education by establishing the effectiveness of an authentic STEAM curriculum and advancing our knowledge of the underlying mechanisms driving students' motivations to persist in STEM disciplines.
{"title":"Creativity in Authentic STEAM Education with EarSketch","authors":"Shelly Engelman, Brian Magerko, Tom McKlin, M. Miller, Doug Edwards, Jason Freeman","doi":"10.1145/3017680.3017763","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1145/3017680.3017763","url":null,"abstract":"STEAM education is a method for driving student engagement in STEM topics through personal expression, creativity and aesthetics. EarSketch, a collaborative and authentic learning tool which introduces students to programming through music remixing, has previously been shown to enhance student engagement and intent to persist in computing. The goal of EarSketch is to broaden participation in computing through a thickly authentic learning environment that has personal and real world relevance in both computational and music domains. This mixed methods study extends previous work by 1) using a newly- developed instrument to assess creativity and 2) testing a theory of change model that provides an explanatory framework for increasing student engagement in STEAM. The results suggest that students who used EarSketch express statistically significant gains in computing attitudes and creativity. Furthermore, a series of multiple regression analyses found that a creative learning environment, fueled by a meaningful and personally relevant EarSketch curriculum, drives improvements in students' attitudes and intent to persist in computing. This work makes a significant contribution to computer science education by establishing the effectiveness of an authentic STEAM curriculum and advancing our knowledge of the underlying mechanisms driving students' motivations to persist in STEM disciplines.","PeriodicalId":344382,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of the 2017 ACM SIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education","volume":"10 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"132103792","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Fifty years ago, Seymour Papert and colleagues developed Logo as the first programming language for children. Today, millions of children are participating in learn-to-code initiatives, but Papert's dream remains unfulfilled. Papert (who passed away last summer) saw programming not as a set of technical skills but as a new form of fluency - a new way for all children to explore, experiment, and express themselves. In this presentation, I will examine strategies for fulfilling Papert's dream. Drawing on examples from our Scratch online coding community, I will discuss how we can design programming environments and activities to help all children, from all backgrounds, to develop their thinking, develop their voices, and develop their identities.
{"title":"Fulfilling Papert's Dream: Computational Fluency for All","authors":"M. Resnick","doi":"10.1145/3017680.3025046","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1145/3017680.3025046","url":null,"abstract":"Fifty years ago, Seymour Papert and colleagues developed Logo as the first programming language for children. Today, millions of children are participating in learn-to-code initiatives, but Papert's dream remains unfulfilled. Papert (who passed away last summer) saw programming not as a set of technical skills but as a new form of fluency - a new way for all children to explore, experiment, and express themselves. In this presentation, I will examine strategies for fulfilling Papert's dream. Drawing on examples from our Scratch online coding community, I will discuss how we can design programming environments and activities to help all children, from all backgrounds, to develop their thinking, develop their voices, and develop their identities.","PeriodicalId":344382,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of the 2017 ACM SIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education","volume":"83 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"131691056","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The first programming language for most children worldwide today is a blocks-based language like Scratch or Snap. GP is a blocks-based programming language designed to be a follow-on. GP aims to be a general purpose language, like Python or Ruby, in which students can create more complex programs or create standalone applications. GP includes a mechanism for creating modules for others to re-use and a wide variety of primitives, including tools for manipulating CVS and JSON data, using serial port and network connections, and manipulating pixels in pictures or samples in sounds. The language could be used in computer science classes beyond introductory computer science. GP explores the questions: "How far can we go with a blocks-based programming language? Do we have to move students to a textual programming language to explore advanced computational ideas and applications?" In this laptop required workshop, participants will try out GP. They will explore sample projects and create their own projects that push on advanced features of GP such as using multiple classes and instances, creating sets of blocks that can be shared as extension modules, using cloud data, or manipulating images and sounds. GP will be released (free and open source) in Summer 2017, so our goal is to find early adopters who are interested in trying GP and developing examples for others.
{"title":"GP: A General Purpose Blocks-Based Language (Abstract Only)","authors":"John H. Maloney, M. Nagle, Jens Mönig","doi":"10.1145/3017680.3017825","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1145/3017680.3017825","url":null,"abstract":"The first programming language for most children worldwide today is a blocks-based language like Scratch or Snap. GP is a blocks-based programming language designed to be a follow-on. GP aims to be a general purpose language, like Python or Ruby, in which students can create more complex programs or create standalone applications. GP includes a mechanism for creating modules for others to re-use and a wide variety of primitives, including tools for manipulating CVS and JSON data, using serial port and network connections, and manipulating pixels in pictures or samples in sounds. The language could be used in computer science classes beyond introductory computer science. GP explores the questions: \"How far can we go with a blocks-based programming language? Do we have to move students to a textual programming language to explore advanced computational ideas and applications?\" In this laptop required workshop, participants will try out GP. They will explore sample projects and create their own projects that push on advanced features of GP such as using multiple classes and instances, creating sets of blocks that can be shared as extension modules, using cloud data, or manipulating images and sounds. GP will be released (free and open source) in Summer 2017, so our goal is to find early adopters who are interested in trying GP and developing examples for others.","PeriodicalId":344382,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of the 2017 ACM SIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education","volume":"3 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"132043291","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Elizabeth K. Hawthorne, Cara Tang, Cindy S. Tucker, C. Servin
The ACM Committee for Computing Education in Community Colleges (CCECC) is updating the ACM curricular guidance for two-year transfer programs in computer science based on CS2013 with cybersecurity learning outcomes infused throughout. This BOF will provide a platform for two-year and four-year computer science faculty and academic administrators to discuss the newly revised associate-degree transfer guidance. The core task group writing the guidance consists of twelve community college faculty across the United States, led by the ACM CCECC and three task group leaders. The guidance has been informed by input from both two- and four-year educators in two rounds of public review and comment; a BOF, special session, and affiliated workshop at the prior two SIGCSE conferences; and international input at ITiCSE 2016. By SIGCSE 2017 the guidance will be in near-final form. The session will include an overview of the guidance, its relationship to CS2013, and infused cybersecurity. Discussion will center on implementing the guidance in two-year programs, gathering program exemplars, and facilitating transfer with four-year university partners.
{"title":"Computer Science Curricular Guidelines for Associate-Degree Transfer Programs (Abstract Only)","authors":"Elizabeth K. Hawthorne, Cara Tang, Cindy S. Tucker, C. Servin","doi":"10.1145/3017680.3022348","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1145/3017680.3022348","url":null,"abstract":"The ACM Committee for Computing Education in Community Colleges (CCECC) is updating the ACM curricular guidance for two-year transfer programs in computer science based on CS2013 with cybersecurity learning outcomes infused throughout. This BOF will provide a platform for two-year and four-year computer science faculty and academic administrators to discuss the newly revised associate-degree transfer guidance. The core task group writing the guidance consists of twelve community college faculty across the United States, led by the ACM CCECC and three task group leaders. The guidance has been informed by input from both two- and four-year educators in two rounds of public review and comment; a BOF, special session, and affiliated workshop at the prior two SIGCSE conferences; and international input at ITiCSE 2016. By SIGCSE 2017 the guidance will be in near-final form. The session will include an overview of the guidance, its relationship to CS2013, and infused cybersecurity. Discussion will center on implementing the guidance in two-year programs, gathering program exemplars, and facilitating transfer with four-year university partners.","PeriodicalId":344382,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of the 2017 ACM SIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education","volume":"32 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"133613463","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Starting Fall 2016, the CS department at USC has begun offering CS100: Explorations in Computing, a brand new General Education (GE) course. The course is only open to non-CS majors (since our CS students go through a CS-specific introductory track that encompasses the CS100 material). The class has 24 students, from a variety of disciplines such as Communications, Business Administration and Theatrical Arts. The course presents a broad overview of computational/algorithmic problem-solving techniques that form the basis of today's digital society. It provides students, a strong foundation for understanding how everyday activities such as web searching, communicating via social media, playing games, booking a ride, etc., work "behind the scenes". The course's intent is to promote computational thinking, as put forth by Jeannette Wing and others. In designing the course, the following aspects were kept in mind: the course is formulated as a GE, for a non-CS audience - so it cannot be heavy on coding; the topics need to involve some form of computational/algorithmic approach; the topics need to have a connection with things that students do with their digital devices (eg. play games, send instant messages, order things..); the topics have to grab the students' attention (keeping in mind that they grew up with tablets, the Web, animated movies and videogames). To that end, the topics are grouped under the following headings: Media Computing, Recreational Math, Algorithmic Art, Social Media and Data.
{"title":"Curriculum Design for 'Explorations in Computing' (a New General Education Course at USC) (Abstract Only)","authors":"Saty Raghavachary","doi":"10.1145/3017680.3022395","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1145/3017680.3022395","url":null,"abstract":"Starting Fall 2016, the CS department at USC has begun offering CS100: Explorations in Computing, a brand new General Education (GE) course. The course is only open to non-CS majors (since our CS students go through a CS-specific introductory track that encompasses the CS100 material). The class has 24 students, from a variety of disciplines such as Communications, Business Administration and Theatrical Arts. The course presents a broad overview of computational/algorithmic problem-solving techniques that form the basis of today's digital society. It provides students, a strong foundation for understanding how everyday activities such as web searching, communicating via social media, playing games, booking a ride, etc., work \"behind the scenes\". The course's intent is to promote computational thinking, as put forth by Jeannette Wing and others. In designing the course, the following aspects were kept in mind: the course is formulated as a GE, for a non-CS audience - so it cannot be heavy on coding; the topics need to involve some form of computational/algorithmic approach; the topics need to have a connection with things that students do with their digital devices (eg. play games, send instant messages, order things..); the topics have to grab the students' attention (keeping in mind that they grew up with tablets, the Web, animated movies and videogames). To that end, the topics are grouped under the following headings: Media Computing, Recreational Math, Algorithmic Art, Social Media and Data.","PeriodicalId":344382,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of the 2017 ACM SIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education","volume":"23 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2017-03-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"133576142","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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