Expanding Your Horizons
Changing Faces in Computers
Module Summary
The purpose of Changing Faces in Computers is to
give students a hands-on programming experience in a high-level language. This
activity is designed for students in 7th or 8th grade but
may be adapted for other grade levels. Expanding Your Horizons is a one-day
program for 7th and 8th grade females with the purpose of
introducing them to the university and potential futures in science, math, or
engineering. This activity may easily be adapted to students of both genders,
but since the program is specifically for females, we discuss the activity with
that in mind. Facilitators begin the session by welcoming and introducing the
students to the computer science department. They cover topics such as: What is
computer science? How should students prepare for a major in CS? What are job
opportunities in CS? What is college like? What is graduate school like?
Students are not assumed to have any basic computer knowledge or programming
experience so facilitators are available to answer any questions and guide
students through the program step-by-step. Students learn how to open, save,
compile, and run a program in Turbo Pascal. They also learn how to alter code,
what error messages mean, basic syntax, writing to the screen, and calling
procedures. By the end, they acquire enough basic knowledge to alter and/or
create their own "face" on the screen with their own message.