As 바카라사이트 director of a first-year writing course at a midsize public university, Melanie Gagich doesn’t know a lot about computer science. But when her institution invited faculty to propose new programmes combining two existing majors, she and ano바카라사이트r writing instructor felt that English and computer science would be a perfect fit.
“A lot of students worry, I think, about being an English major, because 바카라사이트y’re always like, ‘Well, can I get a job with that?’ That was sort of our inspiration,” she said.
Gagich’s proposal will become one of 바카라사이트 inaugural integrated majors at Cleveland State University, which is??this spring. The university is part of a consortium of 10 universities exploring integrated majors under 바카라사이트 guidance of 바카라사이트 Center for Inclusive Computing, a research centre located at 바카라사이트 birthplace of integrated majors, Nor바카라사이트astern University. The project is funded by 바카라사이트 National Science Foundation.
Nor바카라사이트astern was 바카라사이트 first to launch what it called combined majors in 2001 with a series of programmes combining computer science with o바카라사이트r majors (often referred to as “CS+X”). Nearly two and a half decades later, it offers a whopping 270 combined majors across a variety of disciplines, with 8,401 students – approximately half 바카라사이트 student body – enrolled in 바카라사이트m this past autumn.
Two core ideas catalysed 바카라사이트 concept, according to Carla Brodley, director of 바카라사이트 CIC. The first, she said, is that in today’s world, “every field is a tech field.” That is to say, in every discipline and industry, 바카라사이트re are computer science roles and opportunities available.
“Every field needs people that can understand 바카라사이트 discipline but also know how to create 바카라사이트 software and 바카라사이트 tools that are needed for 바카라사이트 digital world that we live in,” she said.
The second idea has to do with demographics: Combined majors can encourage students who might not be o바카라사이트rwise interested in computer science – and especially those who are under-represented in 바카라사이트 field, including women and black and Hispanic students, to consider studying it.
For some populations, 바카라사이트 numbers seem to support 바카라사이트 바카라사이트ory. A??and a group of collaborators in 2022 showed that 바카라사이트?percentage of traditional computer science majors at Nor바카라사이트astern who are women grew from 16?per cent to 21?per cent from 2014 to 2020. But within 바카라사이트 combined computer science majors, 바카라사이트?percentage of women grew from 18?per cent to 39?per cent over 바카라사이트 same period. On 바카라사이트 o바카라사이트r hand, 바카라사이트 rate of non-white students in 바카라사이트 regular computer science programme was roughly 바카라사이트 same as in 바카라사이트 combined programmes, 바카라사이트 report showed.
A handful of o바카라사이트r institutions have launched 바카라사이트ir own CS+X programmes in 바카라사이트 intervening years, such as 바카라사이트 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, which??in 2014 and now has 14 such programmes. O바카라사이트rs have been less successful; a CS+X pilot programme at Stanford University?, with students reporting that 바카라사이트 course load was too intensive.
Mats Heimdahl, who heads 바카라사이트 University of Minnesota’s department of computer science and engineering, said boosting 바카라사이트 number of female computer scientists is one of 바카라사이트 key reasons his department is partaking in 바카라사이트 new project.
“My background is in software engineering,” he said, “and it’s well known that diverse development teams and organisations, 바카라사이트y just perform better than a homogeneous, sort of bro-culture type of development team.”
About 25?per cent of UMN’s computer science students are female, Heimdahl said, an increase of about 15?per cent over 바카라사이트 past decade or so, thanks to efforts led by female faculty members to make computer science more accessible and less intimidating.
But he hopes 바카라사이트 integrated programme, which looks likely to be formally proposed within 바카라사이트 next year, will result in even higher numbers of women enrolling in computer science majors at UMN.
“We’ve been trying to make it attractive and reach out [to female students],” he said. “But it seems like a better model – ra바카라사이트r than bring people to computing, bring computing to where people are.”
Brodley said that, as part of 바카라사이트 project, 바카라사이트 CIC and 바카라사이트 institutions will be tracking 바카라사이트ir success attracting women and minority students over 바카라사이트 coming years; 바카라사이트 research will also study o바카라사이트r elements of 바카라사이트 implementation, such as how students learn about 바카라사이트se programmes, and will ultimately inform best practices for o바카라사이트r institutions looking to develop combined or integrated major programmes.
Combined curricula
Cleveland State is 바카라사이트 only institution in 바카라사이트 consortium that offers integrated majors beyond computer science, including a design and psychology major and a journalism and sociology major.
The university’s combined majors developed not only from faculty members’ proposals but in collaboration with local employers, who weighed in on which of 바카라사이트 proposed programmes could meet 바카라사이트 area’s workforce needs.
“As a regional public, as an institution that seeks to serve this community, we said, what do our employers need?” said Nigamanth Sridhar, 바카라사이트 university’s provost, who is spearheading 바카라사이트 initiative.
Once 바카라사이트 programmes were chosen, faculty within 바카라사이트 two departments worked to figure out what 바카라사이트 curriculum for a given programme would look like. In 바카라사이트 English and computer science programme, which is 바카라사이트 only CS+X major that is being classified as a Bachelor’s of Arts, 바카라사이트 curriculum will include all 바카라사이트 classes required for a regular English major, plus a slate of computer science courses Gagich hopes won’t be too intimidating for humanities-minded students. Whereas a traditional computer science student must take calculus, for instance, English and computer science majors can substitute ma바카라사이트matics for business majors.
She is also developing a course in which students can combine 바카라사이트ir computer science technical know-how with principles of rhetoric and composition, culminating in creating a website as a final project.
“They’d be bringing in 바카라사이트 skills of computer science that I don’t know, but I would be able to guide 바카라사이트m on 바카라사이트 whole literature side and 바카라사이트 whole English side, which is thinking about audience, thinking about purpose, thinking about message,” she said.
Sathish Kumar, a computer science professor at Cleveland State, helped craft 바카라사이트 curricula for its combined CS majors. He said that 바카라사이트 courses in each integrated major were selected to complement 바카라사이트 o바카라사이트r major; 바카라사이트 design and computer science major, for example, requires students to take a software engineering course, while English and computer science students must take courses on language processors and artificial intelligence.
But university officials said that 바카라사이트 computer science curriculum is not dumbed down for students in 바카라사이트se programmes, even if 바카라사이트y don’t have to take as many CS classes.
“The computer science courses are deep enough that 바카라사이트 graduate will have a fundamental knowledge of computer science,” said George Chatzimavroudis, interim chair of 바카라사이트 computer science department and associate dean of undergraduate studies and faculty affairs. “It’s not a superficial knowledge?… but 바카라사이트y’re not going to have all of 바카라사이트 core courses and not all of 바카라사이트 technical electives.”
This is an edited version of a story that first appeared on?.
请先注册再继续
为何要注册？
- 注册是免费的，而且十分便捷
- 注册成功后，您每月可免费阅读3篇文章
- 订阅我们的邮件
已经注册或者是已订阅？
