Active learning to transform Washington University undergraduate computer science education

“But, we’re taking that up several notches,” he said. “We expect our students to become leaders in computer science and engineering, so they need to develop a strong technical foundation, strong communications and collaboration skills, the ability to carry out innovative designs, and an understanding and appreciation of other disciplines and cultures. The goal of this transformation is to help students accomplish this more efficiently by integrating a lot more design activities and collaboration into class time.”

This fall, lectures from CSE 131, Computer Science I, CSE 241, Algorithms and Data Structures, and CSE 361, Introduction to Systems Software, will be “captured” and modularized into smaller chunks. As the active learning transformation is phased in over several years, passive content will be delivered through an online course management system (CMS). Students will be able to use some of that material to prepare for in-class learning activities that otherwise would have been done at home. The CMS will also help students track where they are in the curriculum and enable them to keep portfolios of their project work, useful in job searches and graduate school applications.

It will support planning by providing information about what prerequisites are required for each module in the curriculum, and will allow students from other areas who might want to participate in an interdisciplinary studio to find an efficient pathway through the curriculum to take such courses.

“Because course content will be separated into smaller modules, a student outside of computer science could work with a CSE faculty member to fashion an independent study that would get them up to speed on the particular things they need to know in order for them to participate in an interdisciplinary studio in a meaningful way,” Goldman said.

In the spirit of being interdisciplinary, Goldman and the Department of Computer Science and Engineering are collaborating with Peter McKeith from the School of Architecture in studio-based instruction.

“Architecture has a long history of studio-based instruction,” he said. “Peter will help faculty learn techniques for interacting with students more effectively in studio courses, and he will critique us along the way. In spite of the differences, it’s striking how similar the design processes are in computer science and architecture. We expect that much of the teaching technique will transfer well.”

Keith Sawyer, Ph.D., associate professor of education and an investigator on the grant, will provide professional development for faculty in the area of active learning. As courses are phased in, Sawyer will help faculty plan active learning sessions that make the most of class time. Lynn Stein, Ph.D., of Olin College of Engineering in Boston, will provide curriculum support based on her multidisciplinary teaching experience at her school. Other investigators on the grant, from the WUSTL Department of Computer Science and Engineering, are: Ron K. Cytron, Ph.D., professor; Roger D. Chamberlain, Ph.D., associate professor; Christopher D. Gill, Ph.D., assistant professor; and Cindy M. Grimm, Ph.D., assistant professor.