Computer science needs an insight-based curriculum

ABSTRACT

Computer science is a fundamentally creative endeavour. The creativity necessary for science is not produced through a knowledge of many facts, but through deep insight into the relationships between facts and the methods of inquiry through which they are discovered. The goal of computer science education should be the development of insight into the methods and nature of the discipline, not simply exposure to its current factual content. Unfortunately, few aspects of insight are explicitly addressed in any standard curricula. We call for, and present an outline for, a curricula based on insight rather than topics.

REFERENCES

• Austing: Richard H. Austing , Bruce H. Barnes , Della T. Bonnette , Gerald L. Engel , Gordon Stokes, Curriculum '78: recommendations for the undergraduate program in computer science— a report of the ACM curriculum committee on computer science, Communications of the ACM, v.22 n.3, p.147-166, March 1979 [doi>10.1145/359080.359083]
• Baldwin 94: Doug Baldwin , Greg Scragg , Hans Koomen, A three-fold introduction to computer science, Proceedings of the twenty-fifth SIGCSE symposium on Computer science education, p.290-294, March 10-12, 1994, Phoenix, Arizona, United States
• Cowley: Bruce Cowley , Greg Scragg , Doug Baldwin, Gateway laboratories: integrated, interactive learning modules, Proceedings of the twenty-fourth SIGCSE technical symposium on Computer science education, p.180-184, February 18-19, 1993, Indianapolis, Indiana, United States
• Decker: Decker, R. & S. Hirshfield. The Analytical Engine. Wadsworth Publishing Co., Belmont, CA. 1990.
• Denning 89a: Peter J. Denning , D. E. Comer , David Gries , Michael C. Mulder , Allen Tucker , A. Joe Turner , Paul R. Young, Computing as a discipline, Communications of the ACM, v.32 n.1, p.9-23, Jan. 1989 [doi>10.1145/63238.63239]
• Denning 89b: Peter J. Denning, A debate on teaching computing science, Communications of the ACM, v.32 n.12, p.1397-1414, Dec. 1989 [doi>10.1145/76380.76381]
• Denning 92: Peter J. Denning, Educating a new engineer, Communications of the ACM, v.35 n.12, p.82-97, Dec. 1992 [doi>10.1145/138859.138870]
• Henderson 89: Peter B. Henderson , Francisco J. Romero, Teaching recursion as a problem-solving tool using standard ML, Proceedings of the twentieth SIGCSE technical symposium on Computer science education, p.27-31, February 23-24, 1989, Louisville, Kentucky, United States
• Henderson 90: Peter B. Henderson, Discrete mathematics as a precursor to programming, Proceedings of the twenty-first SIGCSE technical symposium on Computer science education, p.17-21, February 1990, Washington, D.C., United States
• Gibbs: Norman E. Gibbs , Allen B. Tucker, A model curriculum for a liberal arts degree in computer science, Communications of the ACM, v.29 n.3, p.202-210, March 1986 [doi>10.1145/5666.5667]
• Gries: David Gries , Dorothy Marsh, The 1989–90 Taulbee survey, Communications of the ACM, v.35 n.1, p.133-143, Jan. 1992 [doi>10.1145/129617.129629]
• Koffman 84: Elliot B. Koffman , Philip L. Miller , Caroline E. Wardle, Recommended curriculum for CS1, 1984, Communications of the ACM, v.27 n.10, p.998-1001, Oct 1984 [doi>10.1145/358274.358279]
• Koffman 85: Elliot B. Koffman , David Stemple , Caroline E. Wardle, Recommended curriculum for CS2, 1984: a report of the ACM curriculum task force for CS2, Communications of the ACM, v.28 n.8, p.815-818, Aug. 1985 [doi>10.1145/4021.214936]
• Parker: Parker, J., G. Scragg, et al. Laboratories in the Computer Science Curriculum. Journal of Computer Science Education, 1990 (1:3) pp. 205-221.
• Parnas: David Lorge Parnas, Education for Computing Professionals, Computer, v.23 n.1, p.17-22, January 1990 [doi>10.1109/2.48796 ]
• Pratt: Terrence W. Pratt, Teaching programming: a new approach based on analysis skills, Proceedings of the nineteenth SIGCSE technical symposium on Computer science education, p.249-253, February 25-26, 1988, Atlanta, Georgia, United States
• Ralston: Anthony Ralston , Mary Shaw, Curriculum '78—is computer science really that unmathematical?, Communications of the ACM, v.23 n.2, p.67-70, Feb. 1980 [doi>10.1145/358818.358820]
• Scragg 91: Greg W. Scragg, Most computer organization courses are built upside down, Proceedings of the twenty-second SIGCSE technical symposium on Computer science education, p.341-346, March 07-08, 1991, San Antonio, Texas, United States
• Scragg 92a: Greg W. Scragg, Computer organization: a top-down approach, McGraw-Hill, Inc., New York, NY, 1992
• Scragg 92b: Scragg, G. A Problem Solving Alternative to Computer Literacy. Proceedings of Problem Solving Across the Curriculum. Burlington VT, April 1992.
• Tucker 91: Tucker, A. (Ed.) Computing Curricula 1991: Report of the ACM/IEEE-CS Joint Curriculum Task Force 1991. Association for Computing Machinery, New York. 1991.
• Walker: Walker, D. E & J. E Soltis. Curriculum and Aims. New York Teachers College Press, 1992.

INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  K. Computing Milieux
  K.3 COMPUTERS AND EDUCATION
      K.3.2 Computer and Information Science Education
          Subjects: Curriculum

Additional Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.1 MODELS AND PRINCIPLES
      H.1.2 User/Machine Systems
          Subjects: Human factors

  K. Computing Milieux
  K.3 COMPUTERS AND EDUCATION
      K.3.2 Computer and Information Science Education
          Subjects: Computer science education

General Terms:
Design, Human Factors

Keywords:
curriculum development, insight