Summary of Articles

The main themes addressed in the articles are declining interest in 
computer science and efforts to make computer science more 
interdisciplinary.  In the last few years, there has been a significant 
drop in the number of students majoring in computer science.  One issue is 
that traditional ways of teaching the subject no longer attract students 
the way they used to.  New approaches to teaching computer science courses 
involve making programs more interdisciplinary and more hands-on.  Rather 
than just taking a number of traditional core courses, students would be 
required to specialize in applications of computer science, such as 
modeling, intelligent systems, or media.  This approach also allows for 
the ability for students to be more creative and learn in a more 
exploratory environment.  The hope is that this may display a variety of 
career possibilities and give students more insight on different career 
choices.  It would give students more opportunity for active learning and 
to be more goal-oriented, rather than having their education based on 
traditional core courses and lecture.

I believe there are several reasons why students may shun away from 
computer science.  One reason is that more and more computing jobs are 
going overseas, which would certainly discourage American students from 
pursuing the degree.  Another reason is that many students perceive computer 
science as computer programming and that a computer programmer just sits 
in a cubicle all day pounding out code.  Students view this as boring and 
cumbersome.  Another issue with traditional computer science is that many 
students have great difficulty with the mathematical content of some 
courses.  Courses that focus on computer science theory will prove to be 
quite challenging for students with a weak background in mathematics.

I do not really believe there is anything "wrong" with computer science 
itself.  The trend seems to be that students are losing interest in "true" 
computer science and are more attracted to active, hands-on learning 
environments rather than theory and foundation.  I believe this movement 
is based on a change in culture as a whole, rather than one specific 
discipline.  Having experience in teaching math courses, I have seen the 
same trend played out in that field as well.  Rather than learning 
traditional mathematical techniques and foundation, students would much 
prefer learning applied mathematics and how to use mathematics in real 
world applications.  There is a cultural trend these days to make 
everything "fun", students and kids want to be entertained and involved.

As I've stated, I don't feel there's actually anything "wrong" with 
computer science, so I don't see a desperate need to "fix" it, but I do 
believe computer science curricula should strike a balance between 
traditional education and newer active learning approaches.  It is still 
necessary to teach the basics.  Students need to understand basic 
concepts, foundation, and theory, just as mathematics students still need 
to know basic arithmetic and multiplication tables.  A computer science 
curriculum should still require basic core courses, such as introductory 
programming (in C, C++, Java, etc.), theory, data structures, organization, 
and systems.  Later in the program, students should be able to choose from 
a variety of courses that feature more applications and interdisciplinary 
courses.  Examples could include graphics used in video games, simulation 
of climate patterns, or modeling of DNA molecules.  A couple of these 
"special topics" courses could be required for the degree.  This way, 
students will get a mixture of both traditional foundation of computer 
science, and more innovative specialized applications of computer science.

I chose to study computer science mainly because of personal background 
and interest.  I was first exposed to computers at a very young age, and I 
have always had an interest in working with them.  I think it's a nice mix 
of logical thinking and creativity.  I personally enjoy programming and 
developing software since I like the feeling of making something work 
under my control and the sense of ownership I get from creating a product.  
(More information about this can be found at 
http://www.d.umn.edu/~kvanhorn/teaching/articles/cs.html)
I also have natural intellectual curiousity, as I like to know how 
things work and why.  Being able to use computational models and 
simulations may eventually bring answers to many questions.  As a masters 
student in computer science in 2001/2002, I discovered an interest and a 
talent for teaching computer science to students, and so my ultimate goal 
is to eventually become a professor in computer science.