Improving the Structure and Content of Early CS Courses with Well Aligned, Engaging Materials

Abstract

This workshop will provide instructors in early CS courses with tools and strategies for designing and building high quality courses by structure and content, that are student centered, aligned with stated learning outcomes, and with access to engaging learning materials. Workshop participants will be introduced to two software toolkits, CS Materials and BRIDGES, towards achieving these goals. These tools permit searches for learning materials that meet specific learning outcomes, while at the same time provide access to engaging materials that demonstrate core CS relevance to real world problems and applications. Workshop participants will be exposed to strategies for designing courses, materials and tools that can engage today's students and meet their expectations. Although this workshop will be based on CS Materials and BRIDGES, the lessons learnt are independently beneficial to participants.