Preparing for Course in Computer Science

1. Preparing for Coursein Computer Science Mikhail Nesterenko

2. Disclaimers and Preliminaries • this is my opinion to course preparation. Every instructor has his/her own. Treat it a guideline, not a codebook • the advice is geared towards upper level undergraduate course preparation • the most important course objective: teach the largest number of students most effectively with the set amount of expended time and effort • the effectiveness is measured mostly in knowledge imparted and (programming and problem) skills acquired • however, remember you are also a representative of the profession and trade you are teaching: spark student’s interest, desire to learn more and become Computer Science professional

3. Syllabus • syllabus is a contract between you and students. Treat it seriously. Works both ways: • if a student says he/she does not know, have not heard, etc. The answer that closes the discussion: it is in the syllabus. • be very careful about stating something in the syllabus (e.g. the number of midterm exams) and then changing it later (e.g. adding another midterm) • typical contents: course number, name, instructor name/coordinates, office hours, number and form of assignments, late policies, grading policy, attendance policy • some sections: plagiarism, students with disabilities are mandatory. Check with senior faculty or dept. head about them. • more on syllabus in separate lecture.

4. Selecting a Book • first thing in course preparation – pick a book. Take this seriously – it is your most important instrument • students will learn more from the book than from you: you only teach the lecture once, they can read and re-read the book. • you have to agree with the author’s approach and delivery • if it is your first time, consider sticking to what they had before • still spend time looking through the book. It might be absolutely unsuitable for you. Remember switching the textbook takes time (bookstore needs to order them, students may want to purchase it online, etc.), do it in advance • it is part of your academic freedom to select the textbook. However, check with the curriculum coordinator before switching. They might try to • make sure the book is required or the students won’t purchase it • try not to be hard nosed about the most recent edition, they cost more and seldom add anything of value • do provide additional material, however make sure it is online or you have a copy, don’t expect students to purchase anything but required textbook

5. Determining Schedule • Think about the schedule. It usually centers around tests, assigned homework and projects • make sure that you space them out so that multiple assingments (homeworks and projects) are not due on the same or close date. • students tend to start working on an assignment pretty close to the due date. However, give them sufficient time anyway • Publish approximate schedule early. This way both the students and you have a guideline throughout the semester. • It is okay to move deadlines a bit. However, do not do it often, provide justification for the movements and always move them back (do not make it harder for students) • think through late policies for assignments and projects, make up policy for exams. Try not to change those.

6. Scheduling Exams • major incentive for students to study • good feedback for you as far as their progress and for them • can be (non)-cumulative • cumulative – induces the students to learn and remember the complete picture of the course, some material (if multiple exams) have to be studied multiple times, extra stress (since more material tested) • non-cumulative – easier on the students, can be administered more often, encourages “learn-and-forget” attitude • good way is to schedule homework to be due before the exam. This way the homework serves as a preparation for exam. Problem: students do homework and do not do any other preparation

7. Selecting Pace • Major concern: making sure the pace of new material introduction pace is appropriate • too slow – lose strong students: all students optimize time. If the course is easy they switch to others. Besides, good students will not enjoy such class • too fast – lose too many students • adjust pace as you go. • to adjust – check students’ progress • homework/exams - remember that the first ones usually contains students who will be dropping out, hence the sample is a bit skewed. Moreover, some remaining students, if they did poorly, put forth more effort later • feedback during class – ask them questions checking their understanding. Excellent method – do a mini-review of the previous lecture. • Remember – students do not recall most of what they heard in your previous class. Students learn when they read the textbook, do homework/prepare for exam. Do not panic and repeat last lecture. • do not be too obvious about adjusting pace. Students will try to slow the pace down: learning is hard

8. Attrition • tip: you cannot keep them all with limited time/effort resources • do not panic when you see students dropping out • ideally • make sure that students who will not be able to complete the course, leave as soon as possible (so that their and your time is not wasted) • be clear on the assignments form the start, schedule feedback assignments (homework, exams, quizzes) early in the semester, do not start out “too easy”. Try to be even and predictable in your load allocation • educate remaining as effectively as possible (that’s the whole process) • this process is very difficult to get right. Err on the side of keeping students • rates – check with senior faculty and instructors who taught this course before, try to keep the historical attrition rates • upper-level undergraduate – most students are majors, almost all complete the course • lower level undergraduate – attrition may be as high as 1/3

9. Preparing for a Lecture • lecture is a form of pubic speech – need adequate preparation • unprepared lecture – easiest way to lose students’ respect and attention • prepared before? • for the first time – have to prepare slides/think through lecture • later – refresh. Note that refreshment is not just reading slides, read the book (or your lecture would sound hollow). • past performance does not guarantee results. Just because you use the same slides does not mean that you do the same lecture (slides are just the outline). • one way to keep it fresh: read the book and tweak a slide or two. Refer to your past notes (more later) and correct problems

10. Slides vs. Board • slides - lately a de-facto standard • pluses • provide an outline, do not have to memorize lecture, once ready, can be reused (shorten prep time), induces it to think through class presentation • often available with textbooks – don’t count on them: they usually follow the book too closely • or can be adapted from other instructors – need to adapt to your style anyay • problems • take long to prepare (budget about a day if from scratch) • need projector (a point of failure), extra setup time – 10-15 minutes • board • pluses: • have a natural (draw as you explain) progression – easy to absorb, take notes, • easy to draw pictures, easy to “modify” later • minus – have to draw “from scratch” every time, have to better prepare (consider a cheat-sheet, put it in the slides) • it is not an exclusive proposition: can use both

11. Preparing Slides • have to strike a balance between time invested in slides and future reuse: if teach often, spend more time preparing • not the same thing as conference presentation – a one off preparation for a 20-minute presentation culminating a year of work (may need days if not a week to prepare) • put text up first – it’s your class outline, think its through – that’s the most important part • do not follow textbook too closely – if you and textbook say the same thing students are tempted to ignore you and just try to read the book • rather – try to critically re-think the book, condense and present the main points • put in questions to ask the students • easy on the pictures – take a lot of time to draw. Consider (re)-drawing them on the board, very easy on animations • if you get stumped during lecture - remember it and put the answer in the notes area of the slide to be read during class preparation

12. Delivering a Lecture • the objective is to deliver it such that the material delivery is “comfortably hard” • can’t do it monotone: allow students to relax, tell a joke (no personal stories or long unrelated discussions), or some material that is “not on the exam” but is relevant • be animated, lively, energetic (do not overdo it) • ask questions or the students will lose focus • handling student questions (excellent feedback), encourage • answer quickly; • okay to say: “I don’t know and I’ll find out and get back with you” (make sure you do) • good if answer is interesting to everyone, if you feel it is the single student who is interested, say: “let’s discus after class, during office hours” • do not get forced to repeat large portions of lecture – tell them to read the book, come to you after class, etc. Telltale sign of such questions: I did not get the last 10 minutes of the lecture (I missed the last lecture), can you repeat that?

13. Asking Questions • Excellent form of inducing people to think, participate in class, as well as gain feedback • consider doing mini-review of previous material before the class (don’t make it too long or students will get bored) • during the lecture • think of some questions in advance – put them on the slide, make them analytical: • how does this concept refer to that concept? To programming practice? what are advantages/disadvantages of? • make sure that a large portion of the class answers questions, not just 1-2 people. Do not be afraid to put people on the spot, especially in review. Explain that active participation is the best way to learn

14. Attitude from/towards Students • students are customers – your paycheck comes out of their wallets, treat them with respect • however, they came to learn, not to be pampered, know the difference • learning is difficult and stressful, so things get a bit strange • students get tired and start resisting. It is your responsibility to motivate them. • you are an charge, so you have to set the rules, select the material and delivery mechanism to essentially overcome student resistance • do not push too hard. Best attitude: you and students are partners in the objective of learning new material; you help them learn. • you cannot make everyone learn, it is their right to fail or get a bad grade • maintain certain distance from students: you are not their buddy – nobody likes taking orders form a friend. Earn their respect, not friendship.

15. Aids • mailing list for the course – set up and maintain, preferably with an archive. Excellent way to communicate with students: answer questions, send announcements • office hours – be there, somehow students seldom come. But if they come and you are not there, it is a serious problem. • email – encourage students to contact you by email. You can send the answer to the mailing list (protect their privacy, strip their name when answering to mailing list). Email is an excellent feedback tool. Answer email quickly or it loses its effectiveness. Avoid long answers. Questions like: could you explain this concept once again, may be better answered by: come during my office hours, I’ll be happy to explain. • website for the course – place syllabus, lecture slides, homework project assingments, grades there (easy with grades, FERPA restrictions).

16. Notes • Keep notes for future reference • keep dated records of what worked/did not work, ideas for improvement (they usually come after the fact), slide modifications, timing overruns/underruns • next time you teach the course – refer to your notes in calendar order

17. Maintaining Discipline • very important for an effective course • do not do it for the discipline’s sake – students need to feel that it is for their benefit • do not allow talking in class between students – extremely distractive and gets out hand quickly • try to make students come on time: do announcements early, hand out homeworks, etc. Do not wait for latecomers, since they’ll come even later next time (do not harass them either – there may be an excuse for their lateness) • no talking on cellphone, websurfing (consider disallowing laptops altogether or reserving them only for note taking) • cuts both ways – you need to be disciplined too • need to come on time, finish on time, be prepared, answer email on time, grade exams/homework quickly, etc.