Panel Session Great Principles in Computing Peter J. Denning Computer Science Department Naval Postgraduate School Monterey, CA 93943 USA +1-831-656-3603 pjd@nps.navy.mil ABSTRACT Questions and answers about the great principles framework for computing and its impact on the organization and content of curriculum, with special attention to communicating our field, teaching programming, and appealing to a diverse audience. 2. THE PANEL Each of the four panelists will make a short presentation of about 8 minutes: ¢ Peter Denning, Naval Postgraduate School. Overview of the great principles framework and the challenges it presents to curriculum designers. Rudolph Darken, Naval Postgraduate School. Experience with the new CS/MS curriculum at NPS, which is organized around the great principles framework. Eric Roberts, Stanford University. Relationships with CC2001; using the framework to expand the audience for computer science. Mark Guzdial, Georgia Tech. Experience with a first course oriented on media computation and its relationship to a great principles curriculum. Categories and Subject Descriptors A.0 [General Literature]: organization and structure of computing field. K.0 [Computing Milieux]: organization and structure of computing field. K.2 [History of Computing]: evolution of principles and practices of computing. K.3 [Computing Education]: organization of curriculum, teaching programming. K.5 [Computers and Society]. K.7 [The Computing Profession]: professional practices of programming, systems, modeling, innovating, applying. ¢ ¢ ¢ General Terms Algorithms, Measurement, Performance, Design, Reliability, Experimentation, Security, Human Factors, Languages, Theory. 1. INTRODUCTION In an invited speech, Peter Denning discussed the great principles of computing. This framework is a new organizing principle for our field; it may turn out to be more important than œComputing as a Discipline  was in 1988. This session will give attendees the opportunity to explore the framework more, focusing especially on how a great principles framework for computing might affect the CS curriculum, both in organization and in content. What changes to the CC2001 recommendations would follow? What is like to teach such a curriculum? How might we organize the first courses to restore balance between principles and programming practices? How might we introduce computing to overcome the high dropout rates (typically 35 to 50 percent)? How might we offer a picture of computing that is as attractive to everyone as it is to young men? The remaining 40 minutes of the session will be open discussion emphasizing questions from the audience. Notes on the discussion will be provided to the ACM Education Board. 3. EXPECTATIONS Audience: Expect strong interest; every attendee at SIGCSE is likely to be interested the identity of our field and its implications on how and what we teach. Importance: For nearly 60 years we have interred the fundamental principles of our field under layers of technology. A great principles framework offers a way to set them free. Many benefits would flow: communicating the joy of computing to our students and others; demonstrating that our field is a peer with older fields of science and engineering, with longevity and staying power; escaping the perennial characterization as a field of programmers; making our curriculum more attractive; reducing the dropout rates from our first courses. Feedback: We expect this session to provoke plentiful discussion. We will appoint a note-taker and will provide the notes to the Education Board. Copyright is held by the author/owner(s). SIGCSE ˜04, March 3-7, 2004, Norfolk, Virginia. ACM 1-58113-798-2/04/0003 It is time for us to make ourselves known by saying our mechanics, our design principles, and our practices. It is time to stop hiding the enormous depth and breadth of our field.

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