Page 39 - Getting the Picture Modeling and Simulation in Secondary Computer Science Education

Twenty Years of Computer Science in Dutch Secondary Education
2.2.1.1 Objectives
The curriculum for this new CS course, regarded as a science discipline, was
developed with several underlying principles in mind. Its aim was to provide
students with an understanding of information technology concepts, and to give
them a sense of the potential and limitations of their use in the community as 2 a whole, and, more specifically, of their use in their future careers (Hacquebard
et al., 2005). The course was designed to be well within the capabilities of all students, regardless of whether the rest of their curriculum followed the social or the scientific profile. The result produced a course with a multidisciplinary nature, which exemplified how this nature could be applied to complex problems and structures. Furthermore, since CS was not a prerequisite for any subsequent study at the university/college level, there was no need for a national exam; all assessment was to take place in the school itself. These considerations led to the following general objectives:
The CS course at the [...] secondary education level would be focused on providing students with:
• a view of CS and IT, and the relationship between these fields and other subject areas, as well as how they related to technology and society as a whole
• a picture of the role CS and IT would play in their education and career
• hands-on experience with CS and IT through:
• learning the basic concepts and skills of the subject
• studying CS problems
• studying the structures of data processing systems
• working on system development in groups
• and all this within the context of how CS could be applied in society as a whole (Hacquebard et al., 1995).
2.2.1.2 The Position of Computer Science in the High School Curriculum
CS is not a compulsory course as every school can decide whether to offer it not, nor does choosing to take it depend on any other courses in a student’s curriculum. Since its introduction in 1998, it has consisted of 240 study hours for senior secondary education students, and 280 study hours for pre-university education students. These study hours include all the time spent on learning in the classroom, as well as elsewhere. CS course is designed to be taught no earlier than
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