Experiences with a CS1 for the health sciences

Authors:
Jeffrey A. Stone;Darcy L. Medica;Leah Ann Fetsko
Affiliations:
Pennsylvania State University, Schuylkill Haven, Pennsylvania;Pennsylvania State University, Schuylkill Haven, Pennsylvania;Pennsylvania State University, Schuylkill Haven, Pennsylvania
Venue:
ACM SIGCSE Bulletin
Year:
2009

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Abstract

Computer Science (CS) educators are increasingly being tasked to design courses for specific groups of non-majors. This paper reports on an experiment with a CS1-style course for the health sciences. Experiences with offering this course to a cohort of specific health-science majors and with other non-majors are discussed. The results suggest that tailoring a course around a discipline-specific theme may make the course more attractive to students outside rather than inside of the specific discipline. The results also point to the persistent gender gap in CS, as well as the difficulty in translating student success into self-confidence.