Developing Empirical Skills in an Introductory Computer Science Course
David Reed · 2001
This paper describes an introductory computer science course that emphasizes empirical skills as well as programming and computer science breadth. Designed to attract both non-majors and potential computer science majors, the course utilizes JavaScript in a Web-based environment, allowing students to learn the basics of programming quickly and also to take advantage of familiar and intuitive GUI interfaces. In completing online laboratory assignments, students study interdisciplinary applications and learn to form testable hypotheses, design and conduct experiments, and analyze the results. Through interdisciplinary examples and experimentation, students not only develop critical thinking skills but also learn to apply computing to other areas of study.