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Hi - I’m Chris

Overview

2008(?) - I took AP Computer Science A

• I just took it for the AP credit
• I had no programming experience before this
• I loved it!

2009 : Started my CS Major at UVA

• I loved UVA

2010 : First internship - Java

2012 : Second internship - Databases at NASA

2013 : Graduated UVA, started my first job

2013 : My actual first job

2021 : Masters Degree - Systems Engineering at Virginia Tech

2022 : Started teaching at Wakefield

2024 : Today

I’m still learning

Classes I took this summer:

• Philosophy and Foundations of Education
• Risk Management for STEM classrooms
• Academic Literacy for STEM classrooms
• Assessments of and for Learning
• Dynamic Programming, Greedy Algorithms
• Approximation and Linear Programming
• Advanced Data Structures and Quantum Algorithms

CS Courses in APS

Things I believe

• Computer programming is super fun!
• The world needs more computer programmers
  • You don’t have to become a computer programmer - Everyone would benefit from understanding computer programming
• EVERYONE can be good at computer programming
  • You don’t need to be great at math, science, or any other subject to be a great computer programmer
• EVERYONE can succeed in this class
  • And if you succeed in this class, you will become a good computer programmer
• If you don’t understand something in this class, it’s probably my fault, not yours

Our Goal: Be a great software team

• Google’s “Project Aristotle”
• One goal - answer the question “What makes a perfect team”
• Spent two years, interviewed 37,000 employees
• What do you think they learned?

Psychological Safety

Related Note - we need a class charter

My Goals

1. Safety
2. Teach Computer Programming
3. Teach Workplace Skills
4. Have Fun!
5. Assign Grades and Assess Competencies

Workplace Readiness

A requirement of this course

We’ll talk about jobs, learn how to make resumes, etc

Practice professional communication (I’m not your “bruh”)

Put your phones away

• Computers and headphones too
• During instruction, I have no patience for this
• All work is group work, so no headphones/music
• But I’ll play music, and suggestions are welcome!

Leaving class

Dual Enrollment

• You are taking two classes at the same time
• You get academic credit from BOTH APS and NOVA for this class
• At the same time, you have to satisfy expectations for both
• This is a big commitment! Today you’ll sign a “Dual Enrollment Contract”

A few specific things to know

• No Retakes
• No Late Work
• Different grades
• Drop/Withdrawal Rules
• Different accommodation rules

“Flipped” Classroom

• You should learn the material on your own
• Class time is not for lecturing, it’s for practicing
• Reading assignments every day, reading quizzes at the beginning of every class

Let me know if you need help!

• I try to talk one-on-one with every student every day
• You get support from APS and NOVA

First - what does a grade mean?

“An inadequate report of an inaccurate judgment by a biased and variable judge of the extent to which a student has attained an undefined level of mastery of an unknown proportion of an indefinite material”

• Paul Dressel (1983)

Formative vs Summative

• Formative: assessment for learning
  • eg. most classwork, warmups, exit tickets
• Summative: assessment of learning
  • eg. tests, projects

Pop quiz - formative or summative?

• This pop quiz
• A warmup quiz
• A daily classwork coding assignment
• An end-of-unit multiple choice test
• A 2-week project

Your grade is almost entirely Summative!

• 20% of quarter grades: We’ll have formative quizzes most days, and coding practice in class
• 80% of quarter grades: Most of your grade will come from tests, projects
• 20% of semester grade: final exam
• I will make this clear throughout the year

Summary: Grade Breakdown

• Quarter Grade: 20% formative, 80% summative
• Semester Grade: 40% Q1, 40% Q2, 20% Exam (same for Q3&4)
• Final Grade for the year: 50% Semester 1, 50% Semester 2

Points system

• I’ll weight different assignments differently
• I’ll explain more about this as the year goes on

I intend to approach this course like a seminar

• Intention/Expectation: Everyone who does the reading, shows up, participates gets an A
• I’ll follow Jeff Elkner’s grading strategy
• Midterm/Final exam TBD

Tons of resources

• I don’t like to reinvent things, so we’ll use a lot of these resources
• But I also don’t have a single website I love, so we’ll bounce around a lot

AI - Rule in my class

• I think it’s a great thing, and an important skill for you to learn
• We’ll have a lot of fun with AI this year
• Unless I say so, do not use it on any assignments
• If you claim AI-generated work as your own, I will catch it and I will write a referral
  • Same rule for youtube videos, quillbot, course hero, chegg, etc.

Here’s some food for thought

Georgetown University Research Study

• I’m passionate about creativity
• You have an opportunity to participate in a research study about creativity in STEM

The Study

• Two FNIRS scans - beginning and end of the year
• Here at ACC
• Compensation! $20/session

Today’s Assignment:

• Access the course website: ict.gctaa.net
• Find and complete today’s assignment