Computer Science

Committed to the Advancement of Computer Science Education For All Students

What is CS?

Computer Science (CS) is the study of / process of problem solving and design through computational thinking, programming, analysis, and creative modeling using computers, hardware, software, and algorithmic processes in order to solve real world problems, be ethically responsible, improve efficiency, and increase access to knowledge. (i2i)

Computer Science is defined by the US Department of Education Office of Innovation and Improvement as contexts and spaces “where students are able to engage in hands-on, real-world interaction with key math, science, and engineering principles. In addition to coding, it gives students opportunities to be producers in the digital economy, not just consumers of technology around them. Computer science also can help foster ‘computational thinking’ skills and practices that are relevant to problem-solving across many disciplines and careers, skills such as breaking a large problem into a number of smaller ones, recognizing how problems relate to ones that have already been solved, setting aside details of a problem that are less important, and identifying and refining the steps needed to reach a solution” (US Department of Education, MDOE)

Learn More

Computer Literacy vs. Computer Science: What’s the difference?

Misconceptions About Computer Science

What is CT?

Computational Thinking (CT) is a method of collecting, organizing, and analyzing information to solve a problem. Though computers are not necessary to engage in Computational Thinking, special consideration is given to how data can be transferred to and manipulated by a computer to simplify or accelerate the problem solving process.

Computational Thinking can be divided into 4 categories

Decomposition is the process of breaking down complex problems into smaller, more manageable parts.
Pattern Recognition is the process of manipulating and exploring data attempting to find common themes and repeating sequences.
Abstraction is the process of distinguishing between important information and data that can be ignored. Abstraction also deals with making generalizations about data and systems.
Algorithmic Design is the process of creating a list of sequential steps to follow in order to solve a problem.

Benefits of teaching and learning Computational Thinking:

Proven problem solving method regardless of age
Applicable across multiple disciplines, careers, and content areas
Provides a framework of collecting and organizing information in a way enables humans to use a computer to help solve problems