A paradigm shift! The Internet, the Web, browsers, Java and the future of computer science education

• Authors: Christopher M. Boroni;Frances W. Goosey;Michael T. Grinder;Rockford J. Ross
• Venue: SIGCSE '98 Proceedings of the twenty-ninth SIGCSE technical symposium on Computer science education
• Year: 1998

Ready or not, here it comes! A paradigm shift with profoundimplications for computer science education is underway. The shiftis away from a relatively static, localized paradigm of teachingand learning towards an interactive, dynamic, and non-localizedparadigm.The new paradigm is not totally unfamiliar. Various institutionshave for some time been exploring educational activities based oninteractive software, sometimes coupled with two-way interactivevideo for distance learning. These efforts, though, have largelybeen based on technologies that were not universally available ineducational settings (e.g., Sun workstations) and sometimesexpensive to acquire, thus limiting their widespread acceptance byothers. Furthermore, even when the technology was fairly common(e.g., PCs with Windows 95) we have noted from long experience thatthe mere burden added onto the backs of busy instructors ofdownloading, installing (which never seems to go without somehitch), and learning one more new system has hindered thewidespread adoption of many otherwise very fine educationalsoftware packages. But all of this has now changed, and ratherabruptly at that. Downloading and installing software is no longermuch of an issue, and even the local computer platform is of littleimportance. In short, due to the Web and its related technologiesit is now possible for virtually any institution, large or small,to embrace the new paradigm with minimal effort and cost. Indeed,given the momentum of the Web, the paradigm shift may be thrustupon us before we are ready to engage the clutch!Numerous technologies are converging to effect this paradigmshift:" the Internet, with its global computer interconnections;" the World Wide Web, providing easy access to informationvirtually anywhere;" browsers, such as Netscape and Internet Explorer, that allownearly transparent access to the Web;" HTML, which makes the development of universal, multimedia"hypertextbooks" and other documents possible;" Java and the Java Virtual Machine, which provide anenvironment for the development of platform independent,interactive educational software that can be delivered via the Webthrough standard browsers;" powerful notebook computers that can easily be carried to aclassroom and connected to the Internet (or, if an Internetconnection is not available, a hard disk or CD image of therelevant information) for use in a lecture;" small, eminently portable computer projection systems that,too, can be transported to arbitrary classrooms and connected to acomputer for display of computer output, allowing nearly anyclassroom to be adapted to the new paradigm; and" improved interactive two-way video systems, providing fordistance learning and remote student participation from properlyequipped lecture halls.Without question, the most influential of these technologies onthe paradigm shift are the Web and the Java virtual machine. Theelimination of platform dependence as a hurdle to producing goodeducational software systems that can be widely used without hassleis indeed a major achievement of profound import. We thus refer tothe new paradigm as the Web paradigm.There are many different facets to the paradigm shift that couldbe discussed, some possibly controversial. In the confines of thispaper, however, we limit ourselves to the discussion of some of theimplications of the Web paradigm on computing education. We shouldclearly state that our aim is not to discuss future computerscience curricula. Instead, our focus is on the teaching andlearning environment that will result from the Web paradigmand---by implication---the profound influence it will have on anynew curriculum models. In the Web paradigm, instructors will tendaway from a traditional lecture style towards the role of afacilitator, and students will become more active in exploratorylearning.Any discussion of the Web paradigm that did not include someexciting, dynamic examples would certainly not be very satisfying.Thus, the accompanying talk will be liberally sprinkled withprojected demonstrations of the major concepts using relativelyinexpensive technology available today (and sure to be moreaccessible and affordable tomorrow). So, unfasten your mindbeltsand enjoy the ride!