Robert Bryant

Developing a community definition and teaching modules for computational thinking: accomplishments and challenges

The NSF-funded Northwest Distributed Computer Science Department (NW-DCSD) project brings together 24 multi-disciplinary faculty from 19 diverse colleges and universities in an effort to change the face of computing in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. We offer an innovative and inclusive vision of computing in the 21st century and foster opportunities for multi-disciplinary and inter-institutional computing and computer science education collaborations. Over the projects first two years, this community has created 9 engaging, easy-to-use learning modules that teach various levels of computational thinking to two different audiences: non-computer science and computer science undergraduate students. This paper presents the development of a community definition of computational thinking, the learning modules, initial findings, unanticipated challenges, and next steps.

Teaching human-computer interaction: reports from the trenches

Most schools introduce HCI into the CS curriculum through a bootstrapping process. There are many excellent HCI programs at universities around the world, and some new faculty with HCI graduate degrees are starting to appear. But the extreme shortage of faculty forces most schools now starting to teach HCI to use the time-honored method of learning a subject by teaching it.Consensus: Insert HCI into any opening you can find. Learn more about the subject yourself. Let colleagues get comfortable with the idea. A required course in HCI may be some years off, or maybe you will never do exactly that, but you will have laid the foundation for getting HCI into your curriculum.

Software engineering for seniors—overcoming the administrative fears

A five-year old program of a two-semester course sequence in software engineering is described. Strategies for handling four common faculty administrative concerns of teaching a project centered software engineering course are presented. The methods and experiences described are the results of a program now in its fifth year. The program is centered around industry sponsored projects which computer science seniors take from design to implementation during the school year.

The Development of a B.A. in Computer Science and Computational Thinking

In 2006 the computer science program at Gonzaga University was moved from the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) to the School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS). Before the move, a significant proportion of students majoring in computer science (CS) also majored/minored in another discipline within the CAS. After the move, the proportion dramatically decreased in part because of: institutional hurdles for students double majoring across schools; a lack of CS courses within the CAS (where a greater number of students pursue double majors and minors); and additional CS, Math, and Science credits added to the B.S. degree to meet ABET Accreditation requirements. In 2009, we developed a Minor in Information Technology for CAS students that included courses in “computational thinking”, information technology, and computational courses in other CAS disciplines. In 2013, because of a perceived need for a CS degree with a stronger liberal arts background, we designed a new B.A. in Computer Science and Computational Thinking (BA CSCT). Inspired by our earlier CS degree requiring 18 credits in another discipline, the 2007 Model Curriculum for a liberal arts degree in CS, and a desire by administration to emphasize interdisciplinary coursework, the new interdisciplinary B.A. requires a concentration in a “Discipline for Computational Thinking (DCT)” in which the discipline is selected from CAS programs (including Art, Music, Sociology, etc.). The degree requires that an additional three elective CS courses be chosen to best integrate with the particular DCT chosen. What makes the BA CSCT degree unique is the integration of the computer science courses with the chosen DCT.

Experiences in starting computer engineering programs (panel session)

Computer scientists, computer engineers, and systems analysts are expected to be the three fastest growing occupations through the year 2006. Employment of computing professionals is expected to increase much much faster than average.. . . That is from the 1998-99 Occupational Outlook Handbook of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. It is explained that much faster than average means a growth rate of more than 36% in the ten-year period.

A first course in computer science for small four year CS programs

The paper is a contribution to the ongoing debate over the content of CS1. Instead of opting for either the depth first or breadth-first approach, we have built a course using some of the strongest elements of each. This course does not replace CS1 in our department. Rather, we use it to give beginning computer science students a more balanced view of the discipline than CS1 does. We also use it to teach in one place much of the redundant material found in the standard computer science curriculum. We find this makes for more sophisticated students and lets us use our small faculty more efficiently.