Overview of the Discipline of Computer Science

Abstract

This chapter proposes how to address in the MTCS course topics associated with the nature of the discipline of computer science and with cross-curriculum topics. The importance of these topics is explained by the fact that scholars in the field hold different views with respect to its scope; accordingly, different perspectives at the field can be highlighted in the MTCS course as well as in the future teaching of the students, who study the MTCS course, in the high school. Specifically, the following topics are discussed in this chapter: what is computer science, the history of computer science, computer scientists, social issues of computer science, and programming paradigms. For each topic, its meaning and its importance and relevance in the context of computer science education are explained, along with activities which deal with the said topic.