By Chaya Gurwitz
Department of Computer and Information Science

Introduction

Most computer science departments offer an introductory course geared toward students who are not planning to major in computer science. This course is generally known as a "computer literacy" course, although there is no consensus about what "computer literacy" encompasses.

In many departments, this course is a simplified version of the standard CS1 course, the introductory course for computer science majors. in such a course, the focus is on programming techniques and algorithm development (for example, Decker, 1992). While such a course is intellectually challenging, non majors often feel disappointed that the course does not teach them anything that would be "useful" in their daily lives.

In other departments, the computer literacy course is designed to introduce students to microcomputer applications, such as word processors, electronic spreadsheets, and database packages (for example, Gau and Madison, 1993). Although students perceive such instruction as useful, in practice the course often provides little more than vocational training. Students often are not prepared to use application packages other than the ones they used in class.

In recent years, there has been a reevaluation of the computer literacy class. The current trend is to emphasize principles and concepts rather than to concentrate on specific languages or applications. A plethora of principles-based courses have been suggested, all of which are designed to be appropriate for students of diverse backgrounds (Van Dyke, 1987, Myers, 1989, Bierman, 1990, Allen et. al., 1990, Goldweber, 1994). Reading through the literature, one gets the impression that despite all the suggestions, the course is still trying to find itself. All of the proposed courses endeavor to present concepts and long-lasting skills, while at the same time stimulating and interesting students, especially those who are not planning to major in computer science.

We have found that introducing students in a computer literacy class to electronic mail and remote file transfer can be a useful expedient in achieving these goals. In this paper we describe our experiences with adding an e-mail component to our computer literacy course. The course itself is a principles-based course, in which the topics include propositional logic, probability, information representation, programming using a subset of Pascal, and software engineering principles.

The Brooklyn College Computer/Math Core Course

Beginning in 1981, all Brooklyn College undergraduate students have been required to complete a ten-course, 34 credit core curriculum (Cheney, 1989). Core courses are designed for non specialists and are suitable for non majors, but each is meant to introduce material of fundamental and lasting significance. Core courses aim at broadening awareness and widening horizons rather than at career preparation.

Core Studies 5 is a 3-hour, 3-cred it course entitled Introduction to Reasoning and Computer Programming. It was designed jointly by the Department of Mathematics and the Department of Computer and In formation Science and is aimed at non-mathematics, non-computer science and, in general, non-science majors. The course introduces such students to mathematical concepts and reasoning, and it provides them with hands on programming experience to aid in understanding the nature and power of the modem computer. This course is required of all undergraduate students, with the exception of those who have taken more advanced courses in both mathematics and computer science. More detailed presentations are given in (Arnow, 1991).

Brooklyn College's core curriculum has attracted attention nation-wide. With support from the Andrew W Mellon Foundation, over sixty colleges have sent observers to Brooklyn College to study the core curriculum firsthand. The core is seen as being in the forefront of a general trend of "going back to basics." Core Studies 5 has especially aroused interest in the academic community in its attempt to teach mathematics to non-science students and to ensure that all students are computer literate.

Advantages of Using E-mail

* The most compelling reason for introducing e-mail in a computer literacy class is that the students find it interesting and exciting. We have found that it arouses the interest of students who would otherwise "tune out" the class.

* Facility with electronic mail will be beneficial to all students, regardless of whether or not they pursue a major in computer science. Using an electronic mail package provides a natural way to introduce students to the concepts of text editing and file manipulation in a more enjoyable context than programming or word processing. It also serves to demonstrate that not all files are programs, and to illustrate the difference between text files and program files.

* It is especially beneficial for non-mathematics, non-computer science students to become acquainted with modem technology in a friendly setting, in order to reduce their mathematics and computer science anxiety.

* Having students communicate with the instructor and with each other via e-mail fosters a sense of community that extends beyond the classroom. Enhanced communication serves to encourage peer contact and group collaboration.

* Electronic mail provides an effective means of communication for students who are insecure and are reluctant to talk in class. This is especially true for women, (Hanchy, 1993, Moses, 1993, Howell, 1993), minorities (Olagunju, 1991), and recent immigrants. These students also benefit from the socialization afforded by the use of e-mail.

A unit on using electronic mail can be easily integrated into any type of computer literacy course whether a traditional programming course, a microcomputer applications course, or a principles based course.

The E-Mail Component of Our Course

The e-mail assignment we used in our class consisted of several steps:

1) The students first read an e-mail message sent by the professor and responded to it. They were then directed to send an e-mail message to at least one other student. Each student was required to save an e-mail message that was received and to print out a hardcopy of the message. These tasks served to familiarize the students with the e-mail software and to introduce basic file manipulation.

2) As a way of introducing students to the vast resources available through the Internet, we compiled a list of files representing an eclectic mixture of topics (see Krol, 1994). We had the students transfer the files electronically, by sending an e-mail request to ftp@decwrl.dec.com. The list of choices included:

* A copy of the Declaration of Independence

* Information about becoming an astronaut

* Information about current earth satellites

* Information about abortion as an issue in the 1992 Presidential campaign

* A copy of the 1994 U.S. Supreme Court decision ABF Freight System, Inc. v. National Labor Relations Board

* A copy of President Clinton's inaugural address

* Information about weather conditions on the east coast

* A copy of the 1994 State-of-the-Union address

* A copy of O.Henrys story, "The Gift of the Magi"

* Recipes for eggplant, apple pie, and chocolate cake

* A report on skiing conditions

3) We distributed a selection of readings about electronic mail and online information services. The selections were culled from the local press (Baker, 1994, Lewis, 1993, Meyer, 1994, Quinn, 1993, Wade, 1994). Some were chosen for topical interest, others were meant to be thought provoking.

4) The final part of the assignment was to submit a written report. The class was asked to respond to the following:

It has been said that the "electronic village" will change our lives-it will change the way we do business, the way we manage our finances, even the way we socialize. Your assignment is to think about how electronic mail and electronic data retrieval might or might not be useful in your life. Do you find it fascinating or infuriating? Do you think that creating the "information superhighway" is something that the government should be sponsoring? Why or why not

Results

The e-mail assignment ignited genuine sparks of interest. Students' questions and comments developed into animated classes regarding the wide spread of computer applications and the relevance of computers to non-scientists. The mood of the class was remarkable. The students worked and joked together, both online and in person.

Most students did not receive the ftp files. This failure to provided a learning experience. In some cases the files were not received because of spelling errors, brought home the old programming adage GIGO (Garbage In Garbage Out). In other cases the files were not received because of problems with our local area network; this generated many spirited class discussions about computer networks, online services, and issues of privacy and security.

We introduce e-mail in one section of Core Studies 5 during the Spring 1994 semester. Figure 1 shows the results of a survey conducted in that class. Because of the overwhelming response of that class, e-mail is currently being used in fourteen sections of the course.

The results of the survey show that 77% of the students in the class found the e-mail component of the course interesting or useful. Almost 60% of the class wished to retain their e-mail accounts after the semester ended. Overall, more then 80% of the students felt that they had gained something useful from the course.

These results are especially gratifying because many of the students in the class computer and math-phobic. While Core Studies 5 is meant to be a freshman course, many students wait until their senior year to register for the course. We found that this class was more interested and involved than those that we have taught during the past several years. The feeling of many students are aptly characterized in the words of a recent immigrant from the former Soviet Union: "When I was on the beginning of this class I wasn't so happy as now. Why? Because, I didn't know nothing about the computer, and also about logic. I am very proud to know that right now. I know a little bit, not a lot, but I'm only on the beginning of interesting years in the college. Thank you for giving me a basic skills about the computer, I hope I'll need them in the future I'm very sad about that. Our class will finish and I'll never again use the e-mail letter. Why? I want to have a good friends and send them e-mail messages. And also, receive the messages from them too. What can I do without the E-mail???"

Figure 1: Survey of Class Opinion

1) I found the logic portion of the course interesting and/or useful

Agree: Disagree: No opinion:

22 5 4

2) I found the programming portion of the course interesting and/or useful

Agree: Disagree: No opinion:

26 1 4

3) I found the probability portion of the course interesting and/or useful

Agree: Disagree: No opinion:

20 6 4

4) I found using e-mail interesting and/or useful

Agree: Disagree: No opinion:

24 3 4

5) If possible, would you like to retain your e-mail accounts after the semester ends?

Yes: No: Don'r care:

18 9 4

6) I am planning to take another CS course

Yes: No way: Maybe at some point:

9 9 12

7) This course made me more interesting in CS

Yes: No: No difference:

16 3 12

8) I gained something useful from this course

Yes: No: No opinion:

25 2 4

9) The course was better than I had expected

Yes: No: No expectation:

20 2 9

Reference:

Allen,J.T., Porter,H., Nanney,T.R., and Abernathy,K., Reexamining the Introductory Computer Science Course in Liberal Arts Institutions, Proceedings of the 21st SIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education, Feb.1990, pp. 100-103.

Arnow,D., The Iliad and the While Loop: Computer Literacy in a Liberal Arts Program, Proceedings of the 22nd SIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education, Mar. 1991, pp. 78-81.

Baker, R., But Will It Fly.?, The New York Times, Jan. 4, 1994, p.A15.

Bierman, A.W., An Overview Course in Academic Computer Science: A New Approach For Teaching Non-majors, Proceedings of the 21st SIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education, Feb. 1990, pp. 236-239.

Cheney, L.V., 50 Hours-A Core Curriculum for College Students, National Endowment for the Humanities, October, 1989.

Decker,R.W., The Case for CS-0, Computer Science Syllabus 4, Nov.1992, pp.5-7

Gau,G.E., and Madison,S.,Using Student Experience to Guide Curriculum in Introductory Computing, Proceedings of the NECC 1993 Conference, June 1993, pp.216-221.

Goldweber,M., Barr,J. and Leska, C., A New Perspective on Teaching Computer Literacy, Proceedings of the 25th SIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education, Mar. 1994, pp. 131-135.

Hanchy, C.M., Labs, Learning Styles, and Gender, Proceedings of the 1993 NECC Conference, June 1993, pp. 255-258.

Howell,K., The Experience of Women in Undergraduate Computer Science: What Does the Research Say.? SIGCSE Bulletin 25(2), June 1993, pp. 1-8.

Krol, E., The Whole Internet: User's Guide and Catalog, O'Relly and Associates, Sebastopol, CA, 1994.

Lewis, P., Cyberspace is Looking a Lot Like Christmas, The New York Times, Dec. 25, 1993, p.1.

Meyer,M., The 'On-line' War Heats Up, Newsweek, March 28, 1994, pp. 38-39,

Moses, L.E., Our Computer Science Classrooms: Are They "Friendly" to Female Students?, SIGCSE Bulletin 25(3), Sept. 1993, pp. 3-12.

Myers, J.P. Jr., The New Generation of Computer Literacy, Proceedings of the 20thSIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education, Feb. 1989.

Olagunju, A., The Plight of a Minority in Computer Science: An Educational Manifesto, Proceedings of the 22nd SIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education, Mar.1991, pp. 219-225.

Quinn, M., Sliding Down the Electronic Chimney, The New York Times, Dec. 25,1993, p. 48.

Van Dyke, C., Taking "Computer Literacy" Literally, Communications of the ACM, May 1987, pp. 366-374.

Wade, N., Method and Madness: Future Non-Shock, The New York Times Magazine, Jan. 16, 1994, p.14.