During my time at ACU, I have created or assisted in the development of a number of SITC courses, including CS 111, CS 116, CS 311, CS 355, and CS 375. Here, however, I will offer a fuller description of my most recent new course and of my vision for it.
ITC 250: History of Computing will be added to the 2018-19 ACU course catalog and will also be included in the options for Historical Literacy credit toward university requirements. I first taught this material in a special topics course during a summer session in Oxford, largely to SITC majors. I developed the material further and shepherded the course application through the committee approval process. This new course will be a strong addition to SITC degree plans as well as (I hope) drawing interest from many students from other majors who are interested in the historical events and trends that have contributed to current technologies and culture.
Everyone uses computers but many students have little knowledge or understanding of the historical development that has led to our modern technological culture. This course will encourage exploration and consideration of that history. It is is designed for all students interested in learning about the historical timeline and events contributing to this modern culture. The course introduces students to the progenitors of our technological culture, examining the causes and development as well as the immediate and long-term effects of innovations in computing. We examine the causes and development as well as the immediate and long-term effects of innovations in computing, to build a greater knowledge and appreciation of historical events and trends and a fuller understanding of how computing has developed as a discipline and affected broader cultural history.
Through this course, I hope to encourage students to work outside of narrow disciplines, to read and reflect on historical trends and to use that knowledge and experience in evaluating current and future trends. I want to draw together students from diverse academic interests, to foster interesting conversations. That type of opportunity should be recurrent in education and I’m hopeful that this new course will create a space for growth and exploration.