An Interdisciplinary, Laboratory-Oriented Courses Sequence for Computer-Based Problem Solving

Most universities require all students to attain some understanding of computing as part of their college experience. Often courses in "computer literacy" are offered to meet this requirement. These courses, as they are currently taught, are often inadequate for a number of reasons. First they tend to present descriptions of what computers can do rather than focus on how people can use computers to solve problems. Also, they concentrate on teaching the syntax of currently popular software packages or programming languages, instead of focusing on the underlying characteristics of these tools. These courses also fail to represent the breadth of the computing sciences. Hence, what is learned tends to be shallow and of short term value. There is a critical need for a general course, accessible to the average college freshman, that will introduce the underlying principles of computing while stimulating the student's problem solving abilities. The proposed course will meet these objectives. The hear of the approach is to present abstract concepts through the use of computer-based simulations. These simulations will allow students to explore the concepts in a "hands on" manner. The course is designed to be taught in a single semester and will provide an overview of computer science. Many facets of the discipline will be explored through lecture and the accompanying laboratory exercises. Topics include: common applications, such as spreadsheets, databases, computer aided design, artificial intelligence, and computer graphics; algorithms and the major programming paradigms (functional, procedural, and logical); computer architecture, including machine organization and digital logic; and foundations of computing, including automata theory, Turing machines, and complexity theory. The course development effort is truly interdisciplinary with faculty from Computer Science, Business Administration, Education, Engineering, and Arts and Sciences actively involved in the course design. Evaluation plans call for initial development of the course materials at Louisiana Tech University followed by their use a several other universities. Plans for dissemination include making all courseware developed for this project available via the Internet. The PIs also plan to write an introductory computer science text to facilitate the use of the course materials at other institutions. The essence of this development is a structured laboratory environment, including both open and closed labs, that is completely integrated with the lectures. It is the PIs belief that abstract concepts can be taught to, and understood by, students with limited math backgrounds if provided hands-on laboratory activities that cover the basic concepts. Students completing the course are expected to have a much greater appreciation for the computing sciences and many may be inspired to pursue careers in this area.