Stevens hosts second workshop on high school computer science
Attendees were addressed by keynote speakers from The College of New Jersey and Microsoft
HOBOKEN , N.J. ― The Computer Science Department at Stevens Institute of Technology hosted its second workshop on high school computer science on Thursday, May 15. The workshop was attended by both students and educators interested in computer science, software development, information systems, security and privacy, web programming and computer applications.
The day started with breakfast and included keynote speakers Ursula Wolz and Alfred Thompson. Wolz, from The College of New Jersey, discussed Scratch, a new programming environment from MIT Media Lab that allows students to get starting on writing animation programs, including concurrent activities, very quickly and intuitively. Thompson, from Microsoft Corporation, talked about the opportunities for students pursuing careers in Computer Science, noting that by 2014, one in four jobs in the economy would be related to Computer Science. He demonstrated the Popfly environment for building mashups based on graphical programming.
After a coffee break, edu cators enjoyed a panel discussion on Computer Science Pedagogy in grades K-12, which included the keynote speakers as well as Dominic Duggan , Steve Gabarro, and David Klappholz, all professors from Stevens’ Computer Science department. Klappholz spoke about encouraging young girls to pursue Computer Science by using Real Projects for Real Clients, expanding the focus of high school computer science away from just programming to other phases of the software life cycle, specifically requirements analysis and information architecture. Duggan spoke about his experience with the Alice environment. Finally, Gabarro discussed Lego Mindstorms, which is being used at Bryn Mawr College to attract more female students to Computer Science. A panel discussion led to extended issues of Computer Science pedagogy in high school and middle school, as well as the challenge of edu cating school administrators (and legislators) about what Computer Science is.
Stevens plans to continue offering the Workshop for School Teachers of Computer Science, since the shortage of IT talent in the United States shows no signs of abating for the foreseeable future. Further information, including links to materials discussed at the workshop, is available at the workshop website (http://www.cs.stevens. edu /Outreach/Workshop-May-15-2008.php).
About Stevens Institute of Technology
Founded in 1870, Stevens Institute of Technology is one of the leading technological universities in the world dedicated to learning and research. Through its broad-based curricula, nurturing of creative inventiveness, and cross disciplinary research, the Institute is at the forefront of global challenges in engineering, science, and technology management. Partnerships and collaboration between, and among, business, industry, government and other universities contribute to the enriched environment of the Institute. A new model for technology commercialization in academe, known as Technogenesis®, involves external partners in launching business enterprises to create broad opportunities and shared value.
Stevens offers baccalaureates, master’s and doctoral degrees in engineering, science, computer science and management, in addition to a baccalaureate degree in the humanities and liberal arts, and in business and technology. The university has a total enrollment of 2,040 undergraduate and 3,085 graduate students, and a worldwide online enrollment of 2,250, with a full-time tenured/tenure-track faculty of 140 and more than 200 full-time special faculty. Stevens’ graduate programs have attracted international participation from China, India, Southeast Asia, Europe and Latin America. Additional information may be obtained from its web page at www.stevens.edu.
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