SLU 1818 - Computer Science
Department Liaison: David Ferry, Ph.D. | david.ferry@slu.edu
PD and Meetup Dates
1818 Computer Science will host professional development and a meetup this year. We held a meetup during the SLU Science and Engineering open house, and professional development covering local St. Louis university intro pathway curriculum was held via Zoom. Topics for future PD and precise dates for these events will be determined via a survey at the start of the school year.
Syllabus Template(s) & Submission Link
New and returning instructors are required to submit an updated syllabus annually. There are syllabus templates you may use below, as well as a link to the Academic Year 2023-2024 submission link. Two courses are currently offered through the 1818 program.
CSCI 1010 is an introduction to computing with no prerequisites or assumed background knowledge. The purpose of this course is to promote engagement through accessible, high-interest projects and lay the foundation for understanding the computer as a programmer or computer scientist would see it. Courses should be thematic in nature rather than focused on programming content and skills. Instructors are encouraged to look at their interests and backgrounds when selecting a theme - at SLU we have had themes such as Cybersecurity, Bioinformatics, Game Design, Web Design, App Development / Mobile Computing, Multimedia, Scientific Simulation, Big Data Analysis, and Robotics. Within that context, learning outcomes are to do basic programming with a complier/interpreter (up through flow control and conditionals), to describe how some kind of data can be represented digitally (numbers, colors, audio, visual, etc.), and go through several iterations of a design-build-test-evaluate loop on a single project.
CSCI 1300 is a rigorous introduction to object oriented programming and builds upon the engagement provided in 1010 toward larger, more technically complex software. This course has CSCI 1010 and requires the equivalent of College Algebra as prerequisites. However, this course assumes no specific background knowledge or experience in any particular programming language, so coursework start with the fundamentals. See the syllabus template below for more details.
Discipline-Specific Resources
More about our department and degree programs:
SLU Computer Science Department
SLU Computer Science Academics and Degree Programs
The top venue for college-level CS education research:
What to Expect for Site Visits
Participation in the SLU 1818 program includes a yearly site visit to one of your classes for observation and discussion. The site visit is most of all an opportunity to connect as educators, especially important in an educational field as small as computer science. Ideally, the site visit will include observation of a full class period as well as time for discussion afterward. If you would like, I would be happy to briefly address your class about opportunities in computer science and at SLU, but longer discussions would be better scheduled for a separate day.
Site visits will be scheduled individually. I will contact you via email near the start of the academic year.