TY - GEN
T1 - COOL (Computer Outreach Opportunities for Learning) development and assessment
AU - Collofello, James
AU - Urban, Joseph E.
AU - Anderson-Rowland, Mary R.
AU - Navabi, Faye
AU - Banks, Debra L.
AU - Roman, Doris
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2003 IEEE.
PY - 2003
Y1 - 2003
N2 - The COOL (Computer Outreach Opportunities for Learning) project is concerned with increasing the number and diversity of computer science graduates. To accomplish this objective the project is providing an integrated approach to attracting and retaining students beginning at the high school level and continuing into the university environment. At the high school level, the project is developing and refining an innovative secondary school software development curriculum. This paper overviews the high school component of the COOL project. At the university level, to help the students who do not have the computer skills expected of freshmen, including many underrepresented minority students, a pilot placement exam was developed to help identify students who should take a computer basics course before they undertake a computer science class in C++ or Java. The placement exam way given to two groups of students. An analysis was done on the predictability of the placement exam and suggestions for improvement were explored. In addition, the paper includes an analysis of the effectiveness of academic success workshops designed to help the students with concept building in the Java class.
AB - The COOL (Computer Outreach Opportunities for Learning) project is concerned with increasing the number and diversity of computer science graduates. To accomplish this objective the project is providing an integrated approach to attracting and retaining students beginning at the high school level and continuing into the university environment. At the high school level, the project is developing and refining an innovative secondary school software development curriculum. This paper overviews the high school component of the COOL project. At the university level, to help the students who do not have the computer skills expected of freshmen, including many underrepresented minority students, a pilot placement exam was developed to help identify students who should take a computer basics course before they undertake a computer science class in C++ or Java. The placement exam way given to two groups of students. An analysis was done on the predictability of the placement exam and suggestions for improvement were explored. In addition, the paper includes an analysis of the effectiveness of academic success workshops designed to help the students with concept building in the Java class.
KW - CS placement exam
KW - Computer science
KW - Curriculum
KW - High school computer science
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84946058024&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84946058024&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1109/FIE.2003.1264688
DO - 10.1109/FIE.2003.1264688
M3 - Conference contribution
AN - SCOPUS:84946058024
T3 - Proceedings - Frontiers in Education Conference, FIE
SP - F2A1-F2A6
BT - 33rd Annual Frontiers in Education
PB - Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
T2 - 33rd Annual Frontiers in Education, FIE 2003
Y2 - 5 November 2003 through 8 November 2003
ER -