In this lesson, students will have the opportunity to research a topic related to computer science, describe an impact it had on the world, and present it to the class. This allows students to explore topics that interest them and present to the class. Presenting is a great way for students share what they know and give them practice in a crucial skill to have in the workplace. It also allows students to learn about other topics from each other. Finally, analyzing topics in Computer Science put the lessons of the class into context.
Students will be able to...
- Describe their assigned or chosen computer science related topic in detail.
- Facilitate and answer questions about their topic.
- Explore and analyze the interactions between technology and the rest of society.
Coding is a technical skill, but the larger process of software development, product creation, and deployment involves
- Technical innovations
- A community of people
- Cultural beliefs and values.
This process is impacted by the society in which it occurs, and those developlments and products in turn impact that society and possibly many others. These impacts can occur at many levels incuding personal, communal, global, and environmental. The impacts are often positive, but frequently include negative consequences. People in all fields make choices about how they interact with technology and how technology interacts with the rest of the world. These choices -- choices the students will make -- can affect millions or billions of people. Understanding how technologies have affected us and continue to affect us will help us make better decisions in the future.
- Famous figures in computer science that are role models in the community you are serving.
- Important technologies or algorithms (RSA, Dijstra's Algorithm, RAID, integrated circuits).
- New and emerging technologies (AI, Machine Learning, robotics, cryptocurrencies).
- The tech industry (social media, smart phones, video games, health and lifestyle).
- Ethical computing (privacy, cyberbullying, security).
- A list of example topics for research projects.
- Prepare guidelines for projects and/or presentations.
- Encourage students to research from online and other resources, and keep track of sources.
- Citation generator this is a handy way to generate citations (even for websites) that can be included as a Bibliography or References for the project.
- Presentation tips
- Ideas for giving interesting presentations
| Duration | Description |
|---|---|
| 5 minutes | Welcome, attendance, bell work, announcements |
| 15 minutes | Presentation #1 |
| 15 minutes | Presentation #2 |
| 15 minutes | Presentation #3 |
| 5 minutes | Debrief and wrap-up |
- Assign each student one or more topics to research and present to the class on a future day. Topics can be assigned, chosen by students from a pre-defined list, or suggested by students and approved by instructors.
- Create a schedule of when culture days will occur and which students will present on each day.
- Depending on how many students are in the class, and how many days you wish to allot for presentations, your pacing guide can be adjusted.
- Each student should give a 5-7 minute presentation on their assigned topic, followed by 8-10 minutes for questions from the class.
- Students should have a visual aspect to their project (poster, slide deck, props) as well as giving a verbal presentation.
- Use your judgement regarding the level of technical detail expected in the presentation. It is probably not realistic to expect students to become experts in advanced technologies but they should be able to give an overview of their topic and explain at least one way in which this person or technology has impacted some aspect or segment of society.
- Do not allow students to simply read a textbook or online definition of the topic. Ensure they can at least explain the subject in their own words and are begining to analyze its effects on the world.
- Allow classmates to ask questions, but beware of students trying to stump each other.
- Have a few questions for each assigned topic prepared ahead of time for instructors to ask in case classmates do not have questions.
- In smaller classes, each student may be able to present twice in a single semester.
- For classes where students are less experienced with presentations, consider a "science fair"-style event where students produce a display that can be viewed by others to present their topic.
- For students with high levels of anxiety, consider allowing them to submit a video to share with the class or any method that they are comfortable with.
- Students new to presenting can have success presenting with one or two of their peers. Each student should make an attempt to speak during the presentation.