Material Supplement
Supplementary materials from Day 3,
as well as all the submissions we have for Homeworks 1 and 2.
Pre Workshop Information
Advance Schedule in PDF
General Information
Audience:
Computer science teachers, technology teachers, and other educators with
an interest in incorporating computer science concepts into their
classrooms. Some familiarity with computer technology would be helpful,
but you do not have to be a programmer or an expert; and you needn't have
taught computer classes in the past.
Format:
This three day intensive workshop will include a mixture of presentations, hands-on activities, discussions, and working sessions. Laptop computers will be available for use by teachers who do not have their own.
Motivation:
Computer skills are essential to high school graduates
today, regardless of what field they enter. But many students leave
high school without even a basic understanding of the technology works
or how software is developed.
This limits their ability to make informed decisions about the
technology and exploit its full potential. Moreover, without a basic
understanding, many are afraid to take computer science classes later, and
therefore never acquire this valuable knowledge.
Goals:
After
attending this workshop, teachers will be better prepared to (1) help
demystify technology for a wide range of students, not just the "typical"
computer science student, (2) expose students to new
ways of approaching information modeling and designing problem-solving
processes that are applicable to a
variety of content areas, and (3) introduce students to fundamental
ideas in computer science, software design, and implementation. These
methods are particularly useful for
students currently underrepresented in computer science, including women
and minorities.
Expected Outcomes: Workshop participants will
- develop an understanding of software systems as a composition of interacting components,
- build a mental model of hardware systems (CPU, memory, etc.) and how they support the execution of programs,
- learn widely applicable techniques for representing information and modeling relationships,
- study communication and information flow concepts applicable to computer systems and organizations,
- develop a deeper understanding of process and algorithm concepts,
- learn fundamental concepts of Java, the programming language used for the Computer Science AP exam,
- become familiar with two Java software development environments suitable for use with middle school and high school students: JPie (an educational tool developed at Washington University) and Eclipse (a professional programming environment),
- learn about career opportunities in computer science,
- learn ways to present computer science concepts to students at different grade levels, with different background, and with different learning styles,
- discuss real-world case studies that naturally lead to questions about ethics and responsibility in the development, dissemination, and use of technology,
- develop ideas for integrating computer science concepts into lessons in their specific content areas, and
- formulate a plan for bringing content of the workshop back to other teachers in their district.
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