Computing Sciences Accreditation Board (CSAB) Curriculum Requirements

Computer Science Core Courses covering the following topics:

(C1) data structures

(C2) algorithms

(C3) software design

(C4) computer architecture and hardware

(C5) concepts of programming languages

(C6) systems

Computer Science Advanced Courses covering the following topics:

(A1) data structures

(A2) algorithms

(A3) software design

(A4) computer architecture and hardware

(A5) concepts of programming languages

(A6) systems

Computer Science Courses Overall Focusing on:

(F1) theoretical foundations

(F2) problem analysis

(F3) solution design

Mathematics Courses Covering:

(M1) calculus

(M2) discrete mathematics

(M3) probability

(M4) statistics

Science Courses Including

(S1) laboratory science

(S2) scientific method

General Education Courses:

(G1) social science

(G2) breadth

Overall Requirements:

(O1) oral and written communication

(O2) social and ethical issues

Assessment

Our co-op faculty, Mel Simms and Mark Erickson have developed a tool for measuring the program learning objectives. This tool is carefully structured to align with the learning objectives and has been under development for several years in close cooperation with the academic faculty. The tool attempts to identify where the learning objective has been encountered and the level of proficiency. This tool has deployed in three phases:

· Phase 1: To determine where CS students perceive they acquired their technical, ACE and professional skills.

· Phase 2: To add employers assessment of student skills compared to job requirements

Phase 3: To include a CS Faculty assessment (in progvress).

The continued development of this assessment tool is still viewed as a research project and will be invaluable in helping us monitor the learning outcomes of our students.

In addition to the use of this tool, our co-op faculty employ traditional means as well, including employer evaluations of each student upon completion of their co-op assignment as well as mandatory attendance of each student at a reflection seminar upon return from co-op.

Anticipated Outcomes for Integrated Learning Assignments in the College of Computer Science.

It is anticipated that cooperative education assignments in the College of Computer Science will provide the student with a variety of activities ranging from initial exposure, to primary exposure to reinforcement of curriculum objectives. The specific outcomes to be based on the type of assignment, the working environment, and the skill level of the student. See both the list below and the attached chart which outline where curriculum objectives are anticipated to be accomplished: P - primary situation where skills are attained; E - some exposure without necessarily acquiring proficiency; and/or R - place where the skills are reinforced.

The major professional learning objectives for each of the three co-op assignments in our semester conversion plan can be summarized as follows:

· Assignment 1 (C1): Practice professionalism in the workplace, learn good work ethics, and learn to communicate and interact with colleagues.

· Assignment 2 (C2): Succeed at independent technical tasks with a moderate amount of supervision and reinforce professional skills

· Assignment 3 (C3): Assume independent responsibility and leadership.

The following lists are ordered from high frequency to less frequent and is based on documented information from the cooperative education assignments.

Learning Outcomes for C1	Proficiency

Practice professionalism in the Computer Science workplace	P
Utilize written communication skills	E
Practice ethical behavior and values	E
Use Technical judgment	E
Communicate technical work clearly	E
Understand the impact of science and technology on our lives	E
Understand social impact of computing	E
Use creative problem solving	E
Identify and fix bugs in programs (Trouble Shooting)	E
Evaluate alternatives	E
Utilize clear problem specifications	E
Make valid conclusions from evidence	E
Use debugging techniques	E
Use critical analysis	E
Use business skills	E
Write small "pattern" programs less than 250 lines	E
Utilize oral presentation(s)	E
Write programs 250 lines or longer	E
Other skills/knowledge areas may be obtained while on the first co-op depending on the specific assignment.

Learning Outcomes for C2	Proficiency

Practice professionalism in the Computer Science workplace	R
Write small "pattern" programs less than 250 lines	R
Use written communication skills	R
Use creative problem solving	R
Communicate technical work clearly	R
Practice ethical behavior and values	R
Identify and fix bugs in programs (Trouble Shooting)	R
Use technical judgment	R
Use documentation	R
Make valid conclusions from evidence	R
Use debugging techniques	R
Evaluate alternatives	R
Build web applications	P
Use software specifications and design	R
Write programs 250 lines or longer	R
Use negotiation skills	P
Use network topologies	R
Use network administration and communication	P
Utilize clear problem specifications	R
Utilize security and protection	P
Utilize oral presentation(s)	R
Use business skills	R
Understand the impact of science and technology on our lives	R
Understand social impact of computing	R

Learning Outcomes for C3	Proficiency

Write small "pattern" programs less than 250 lines	R
Write programs 250 lines or longer	R
Identify and fix bugs in programs (Trouble Shooting)	R
Use functions, relations, and sets	R
Make valid conclusions from evidence	R
Use basic algorithmic analysis	R
Use visual design	R
Use data modeling techniques (entity-relationship diagrams)	R
Use physical storage techniques (disk allocation, tree structures, hashing, etc.)	R
Build web applications	R
Utilize software specifications and design	R
Use written communication skills	R
Use creative problem solving	R
Use technical judgment	R
Understand the impact of science and technology on our lives	R
Make informed judgments in light of scientific evidence	R
Practice professionalism in the Computer Science workplace	R
Use object-oriented programming	R
Utilize graphic systems	R
Use visualization	R
Use critical analysis	R
Use clear problem specifications	R
Make oral presentation(s)	R
Practice ethical behavior and values	R
Understand social impact of computing	R

Assessment of Outcomes Conducted by Cooperative Education Program and

College of Computer Science

· Regular assessment of student learning through self-evaluations, the online co-op student evaluation, employer evaluations and faculty evaluations.

· Regular assessment from employers of student performance and college curriculum appropriateness.

· Regular assessment from faculty of students performance and cooperative education curriculum outcomes

Integration of Co-op With Academic Experiences

The fundamental basis for the integration of the academic and cooperatives education experiences for our students is the shared responsibility between the academic and co-op faculty for the program objectives and the co-op learning objectives. The formal integration efforts are designed to reinforce the connections that students must make between the learning experiences that take place in the classroom and those that occur in the workplace. There are three major components:

· Formal course work that has a major focus on our practice oriented education efforts

· Formal course work that focuses on topics of great technical importance in the real world and which will have a direct impact on student competencies in successfully completing their co-op experiences.

· The maintenance of a “co-op portfolio” for each student, which keeps a running account of his or her co-op experiences along with an updated vita. The co-op portfolio will be used by instructors to calibrate the level of student preparedness for the class based on their background and co-op experiences, and where appropriate, add more breadth or depth to the course. These portfolios will be constructed under the supervision of co-op faculty and reviewed by the academic faculty. Co-op portfolios will be a mandatory requirement for students in the co-op program and will be required reading for all instructors.

Formal Course work Focused on Integrations Efforts:

· CS/IS Overview 1, 2: An important goal of Overview 1 is preparation and planning for Co-op 1 (C1). The follow-up course, Overview 2, is concerned with UNIX and the Web, ethical issues, software and document copyright issues and appropriate behavior in a networked environment. Both courses are team taught by a faculty member and our co-op coordinators with guest lectures where appropriate.

· Technical Writing: This course is taken in between C1 and C2 for students in Co-op Pattern A and after C2 for students in Co-op Pattern B. This course has direct application to the communication skills, required for professional employment. Many of the students incorporate technical knowledge acquired on their co-op positions as a basis for their class project and this provides a great opportunity for class discussions on student co-op experiences.

· Computers and Society: This course is taken in between C2 and C3 for students in Co-op Pattern A and after C3 for students in Co-op Pattern B. This course provides students with an opportunity to have class discussions on ethical issues encountered on their co-op positions.

· Capstone Course and Honors/Senior Seminar: The capstone course will be typically taken after C2 and the seminar courses after C3. These are project-based courses and provide students with an opportunity to incorporate technical material acquired on their co-op positions to achieve greater depth.

Formal Technical Course Work:

It should be noted that most faculty in the College have had significant work experience and can relate the conceptual material that students must acquire to practical considerations encountered on the job. Furthermore, we know from our co-op assessment that students are able to apply the knowledge learned in the classroom to their co-op positions.

· CS Core Courses (other than Overview 1,2)

· CS Advanced courses (other than Overview 1,2)

Co-op Portfolio:

Currently each student is required to attend a reflection seminar upon return from co-op. It is expected that the student will produce a one-page discussion of their co-op experience for the reflection seminar that will then be incorporated in their portfolio. Portfolios will be made available to instructors in order to better understand the level of preparation of each student in their class and how the individual co-op experiences can be woven into the class discussions.

The integration efforts can best be understood through the following interplay between formal coursework and the learning objectives for each of the three co-op experiences. .

Before C1

· Course work, which combines professional preparation and the technical knowledge required to obtain a good co-op position and to complete the assignment successfully.

- CS/IS Overview 1, 2:

- Core CS courses which have a heavy emphasis on software design and computer architecture.

Between C1 and C2

· Update co-op portfolio incorporating the technical and professional experience gained on C1.

· Complete CS core requirements and begin work on CS advanced courses and electives.

· Complete Technical Writing course.

Between C2 and C3

· Update co-op portfolio incorporating the technical and professional experience gained on C2.

· Continue work on CS advanced courses and electives.

· Complete Computers and Society for students in co-op pattern A.

· Complete capstone course for students in co-op pattern A. This is a project-based course, which makes heavy use of student academic knowledge and draws upon student competencies acquired on co-op.

Post C3

· Update co-op portfolio incorporating the technical and professional experience gained on C3.

· Complete CS advanced courses and electives.

· Complete Computers and Society for students in co-op pattern B

· Complete capstone course for students in co-op pattern B.

· Complete Senior Seminar of Honors Senior Seminar for students in the honors program. Both courses require a major oral presentation and rely heavily on knowledge acquired from their academic and co-op experiences.

ACE Goals (The University’s Common Experience Goals for all colleges)