Language Choice and Key Concepts in Introductory Computer Science Courses

AbstractBecause computer science is a complex and rapidly evolving discipline, educators at all levels have been required to revise their curricula as new paradigms and tools emerge. Since 1968, there have been three major computer science curriculum documents for the first course at the college/university level (CS1), and recent research shows no diminishment of this rate of evolution. This article reports on a survey of 900 postsecondary institutions in North America that offer a CS1 course. The results demonstrate that despite differing course descriptions, there is a key set of computer science concepts common to most CS1 courses. They also indicate that over the last two years there has been a significant shift in programming language use for CS1, centering or the replacement of Pascal with C and C++. This ascendancy may, however, be short-lived, as many of those presently using C+ + indicate that they are considering a further switch to Java over the next two years.