Can I contribute?

Sure! If you take a look at some of my modules in the repository, you’ll see that they have a similar structure. I write everything up in markdown and then use Jekyll to create the nice website you see here. Currently, I’m looking for modules that fit the following criteria:

  • Appropriate for students in CS 1 (or CS 2)
  • Is practice-based - students externalize their beliefs directly in code.
  • Pairs with existing curriculum (for example, the exercise can double as practice for writing for loops)

You can either email me at evan.peck@bucknell.edu or submit a pull request in the repository.

How do you see these modules being improved?

Many, many ways.

I see these modules more as conversation-starters than polished, finished assignments. I hope they are enough to encourage other educators to use them, but I also hope that people make them better!

How effective are these modules?

Anecdotally, I have had fantastic responses from my students - both during lectures themselves and afterwards in teaching evaluations. BUT..

Anecdotally is the key word here. There is no research behind their effectiveness, and I don’t pretend to be a CS ed researcher. Personally, I believe that learning ethical reflection habits alongside programming habits will be more effective than standalone ethics courses… but I have no evidence to back this up. While it’s in my longterm plan to quantify the impact of these modules, the bottom line here is that you should listen to CS education researchers over me.

How will I have time to insert these in my (very full) CS 1 courses?

The intention of these modules is that they pair directly with your existing curriculum. For example, I often set aside lecture or two for students to practice for loops on tiny functions. I still take that time, but instead of situating it on abstract functions, I situate that practice in an ethical reflection scenario.

I don’t want to claim that these modules take NO more time, but I’ve found the impact to be minimal in my course.

More soon…