C++ Teaching Reform and Exploration Based on ACM/ICPC and Live Code

Abstract

How to further increase the programming interest of the C++ course for all freshmen is still a very challenging problem for the time being. The International Collegiate Programming Contest (ICPC) is sponsored by the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM). It is an annual competition designed to showcase college students' innovative ability, team spirit and ability to write programs, and analyze and solve problems under pressure. Aiming at the main problems existing in traditional C++ curriculum teaching, a live code teaching method and an ACM/ICPC innovation model are proposed in this paper that highlights the "student-centered" teaching concept. By taking the "problem-solving" as the main line of teaching, the "live code" as the teaching method, and the informatization teaching as the means, the ACM/ICPC competition promotes the integration of the students' theory and practice. The results of more than ten years of practical teaching show that the proposed live code pedagogy and the ACM/ICPC-based reform have effectively cultivated the students' programming interest and computational thinking, and significantly improved their programming and innovation abilities. At present, the live code teaching method and the ACM/ICPC innovation model have been effectively promoted and applied in the three campuses of our university, as they have a certain leading and exemplary role in cultivating strong professional programming skills, computational thinking, global vision and the all-round development of top-notch innovative talents in the computer field.