Restructuring the Introductory Computer Science Course with Topics from AI

Using AI to Motivate Greater Participation in Computer Science

Volume

Using AI to Motivate Greater Participation in Computer Science

Contents

The traditional CS1 syllabus focuses almost entirely on elementary programming concepts and leaves little time to explore the broad discipline of computer science, including the many exciting developments in artificial intelligence. Hence, some students who take the CS1 course develop the misconception that computer science involves little more than programming, and they decide not to study it any further. We have developed a unified approach to CS1 that integrates aspects of the traditional CS0 and CS1 syllabi. This approach draws examples from AI to help illustrate the enormous potential for and broad societal impact of advances in computer science.