skip to main content
10.1145/3437800.3439208acmconferencesArticle/Chapter ViewAbstractPublication PagesiticseConference Proceedingsconference-collections
research-article

Designing Computer Science Competency Statements: A Process and Curriculum Model for the 21st Century

Published: 25 December 2020 Publication History

Abstract

The broadly influential document Computing Curricula 2005 (CC2005) is in the process of being updated through a project called Computing Curricula 2020 (CC2020). CC2020 provides a vision for the future of computing education, including a comprehensive report that contrasts curricular guidelines, and contextualizing those guidelines within the broader landscape of computing education. In the process, a framework of competency-based educational principles has been developed which is closely aligned with other skills and qualifications frameworks. This working group report demonstrates one way in which the transition from current learning-outcomes-based practices to the competency-based practices can be approached. Further, the paper discusses the challenges and insights that have emerged as the learning outcomes for various Knowledge Areas in the CS2013 report were re-expressed in terms of competencies.

References

[1]
ACM Computing Curricula Task Force (Ed.). 2013. Computer Science Curricula 2013: Curriculum Guidelines for Undergraduate Degree Programs in Computer Science. ACM, Inc. https://doi.org/10.1145/2534860
[2]
Joanna Allan. 1996. Learning outcomes in higher education. Studies in higher education 21, 1 (1996), 93--108. Type: Journal Article.
[3]
Lorin W. Anderson, David R. Krathwohl, Peter W. Airasian, Kathleen A. Cruik- shank, Richard E. Mayer, Paul R. Pintrich, James Raths, and Merlin C. Wittrock. 2001. A taxonomy for learning, teaching, and assessing: A revision of Bloom's taxonomy of educational objectives, abridged edition (1 ed.). Pearson, New York, NY.
[4]
R.M. Baron and D.A. Kenny. 1986. The moderator-mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 52 (1986), 1173--1182. https://psych. wisc.edu/henriques/mediator.html
[5]
S Beecham, T Clear, J Barr, M Daniels, M Oudshoorn, and J Noll. 2017. Preparing Tomorrow's Software Engineers for Work in a Global Environment. IEEE Software 34, 1 (2017), 9--12. https://doi.org/10.1109/MS.2017.16 Type: Journal Article.
[6]
Mordechai Ben-Ari. 1998. Constructivism in computer science education. ACM SIGCSE Bulletin 30, 1 (March 1998), 257--261. https://doi.org/10.1145/274790. 274308
[7]
Meurig Beynon. 2009. Constructivist Computer Science Education Reconstructed. Innovation in Teaching and Learning in Information and Computer Sciences 8, 2 (June 2009), 73--90. https://doi.org/10.11120/ital.2009.08020073 Publisher: Routledge _eprint: https://doi.org/10.11120/ital.2009.08020073.
[8]
Stephen Billett. 2009. Realising the educational worth of integrating work experi- ences in higher education. Studies in Higher Education 34, 7 (Nov. 2009), 827--843. https://doi.org/
[9]
Benjamin S Bloom, Max D Englehart, Edward J Furst, Walter H Hill, and David R Krathwohl. 1956. Taxonomy of educational objectives. Vol. 1: Cognitive domain. McKay, New York:. https://scholar.google.ca/scholar?q=Bloom,+B.+S. %3B+Engelhart,+M.+D.%3B+Furst,+E.+J.%3B+Hill,+W.+H.%3B+Krathwohl,+D. +R.+(1956).+Taxonomy+of+educational+objectives:+The+classification+ of+educational+goals.+Handbook+I:+Cognitive+domain.+New+York: +David+McKay+Company.&hl=en&as_sdt=0&as_vis=1&oi=scholart
[10]
Stefania Bocconi, Augusto Chioccariello, Giuliana Dettori, Anusca Ferrari, Katja Engelhardt, Panagiotis Kampylis, and Yves Punie. 2016. Developing computational thinking in compulsory education. JRC Working Papers JRC104188. Joint Research Centre (Seville site). 68 pages. https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/ handle/JRC104188
[11]
Claus Brabrand and Bettina Dahl. 2009. Analyzing CS Competencies Using the SOLO Taxonomy. In Proceedings of the 14th Annual ACM SIGCSE Conference on Innovation and Technology in Computer Science Education (ITiCSE '09). ACM, New York, NY, USA, 1--1. https://doi.org/10.1145/1562877.1562879
[12]
Barbara Bre?ko and Anusca Ferrari. 2016. The digital competence frame- work for consumers. Science for Policy EUR28133EN. Joint Research Cen- ter (JRC). 28 pages. http://www.acrmalta.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/ DigCompConsumersfinalpublicationJRC103155.pdf DOI 10.2791/278444. Corpus ID: 114779981.
[13]
Quinn Burke and Cinamon Sunrise Bailey. 2020. Becoming an 'adaptive' expert. Commun. ACM 63, 9 (2020), 56--64.
[14]
Francesca Caena and Christine Redecker. 2019. Aligning teacher competence frameworks to 21st century challenges: The case for the European Digital Com- petence Framework for Educators (Digcompedu). European Journal of Education 54, 3 (2019), 356--369. Publisher: Wiley Online Library.
[15]
Michael E Casrsen, Judith Gal-Ezer, Andrew McGettrick, and Enrico Nardelli. 2018. Informatics for All The strategy. ACM.
[16]
T Clear. 2015. 'Follow the moon' development: writing a systematic literature review on Global Software Engineering Education [Keynote Presentation]. In Proceedings of the 15th Baltic Sea Conference on Computing Education Research, (Koli Calling), P Kinnunen and J Sheard (Eds.). ACM, New York, 1--4. https: //doi.org/10.1145/2828959.2835019 Type: Book Section.
[17]
European Commission. 2018. Commission staff working document accompanying the document Proposal for a Council Recommendation on Key Competences for Lifelong Learning. (2018).
[18]
Quintin Cutts, Elizabeth Patitsas, Elizabeth Cole, Peter Donaldson, Bedour Al- shaigy, Mirela Gutica, Arto Hellas, Edurne Larraza-Mendiluze, Robert McCart- ney, and Charles Riedesel. 2018. Early developmental activities and computing proficiency. In Proceedings of the 2017 ITiCSE Conference (Working Group Re- ports). Association for Computing Machinery, Bologna, Italy, 140--157. https: //doi.org/10.1145/3174781.3174789
[19]
Mats Daniels, Åsa Cajander, Tony Clear, and Roger McDermott. 2015. Col- laborative technologies in global engineering : New competencies and chal- lenges. International journal of engineering education 31, 1 (2015), 267--281. http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-240569
[20]
Andrea Danyluk, Paul Leidig, Lillian Cassel, and Christian Servin. 2019. ACM Task Force on Data Science Education: Draft Report and Opportunity for Feedback. In Proceedings of the 50th ACM Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education. Association for Computing Machinery, Minneapolis, MN, 496--497.
[21]
Michael Eraut. 2010. Knowledge, Working Practices, and Learning. In Learning Through Practice: Models, Traditions, Orientations and Approaches, Stephen Billett (Ed.). Springer Netherlands, Dordrecht, 37--58. https://doi.org/10.1007/978--90- 481--3939--2_3
[22]
Peter A. Facione, Noreen C. Facione, and Carol A. Giancarlo. 2000. The Disposition Toward Critical Thinking: Its Character, Measurement, and Re- lationship to Critical Thinking Skill. Informal Logic 20, 1 (2000), 61-- 84. https://www.insightassessment.com/content/download/755/4787/file/J_ Infrml_Ppr+_2000+-+Disp+%26+Skls.pdf
[23]
Katrina Falkner, Sue Sentance, Rebecca Vivian, Sarah Barksdale, Leonard Busuttil, Elizabeth Cole, Christine Liebe, Francesco Maiorana, Monica M McGill, and Keith Quille. 2019. An International Study Piloting the MEasuring TeacheR Enacted Computing Curriculum (METRECC) Instrument. In Proceedings of the Working Group Reports on Innovation and Technology in Computer Science Education. 111-- 142.
[24]
Stephen Frezza, Åsa Cajander, Arnold Pears, Mats Daniels, Viggo Kann, Aman- preet Kapoor, Roger McDermott, Anne-Kathrin Peters, Charles Wallace, and Mihaela Sabin. 2018. Modeling global competencies for computing education. In Proceedings of the 23rd Annual ACM Conference on Innovation and Technology in Computer Science Education - ITiCSE 2018. ACM Press, Larnaca, Cyprus, 348--349. https://doi.org/10.1145/3197091.3205844
[25]
Stephen Frezza, Tony Clear, and Alison Clear. 2020. Unpacking Dispositions in the CC2020 Computing Curriculum Overview Report. In Proceedings of the 50th Frontiers in Education Conference. IEEE CS, Uppsala, Sweden, 9.
[26]
Stephen Frezza, Mats Daniels, and Aaron Wilkins. 2019. Assessing Students? IT Professional Values in a Global Project Setting. ACM Transactions on Computing Education Special Issue on Global Software Eningeering Education, TBD (2019), 33.
[27]
D Giordano, A Faro, F Maiorana, C Pino, and C Spampinato. 2009. Feeding back learning resources repurposing patterns into the 'information loop': opportuni- ties and challenges. In 9th International Conference on Information Technology and Applications in Biomedicine. IEEE, Larnaca, Cyprus, 1--6. https://doi.org/
[28]
Gerald Grant. 1979. On competence: a critical analysis of competence-based reforms in higher education. ERIC (1979).
[29]
Paul Hager, Andrew Gonczi, and James Athanasou. 1994. General issues about assessment of competence. Assessment and evaluation in higher education 19, 1 (1994), 3--16. Type: Journal Article.
[30]
Holly Hendrigan, Keshav Mukunda, and Diana Cukierman. 2020. A Case Study and Call to Action: Incorporating the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy in Undergraduate CS Courses. In Proceedings of the 2020 ACM Conference on Innovation and Technology in Computer Science Education. 198--204.
[31]
Trevor Hussey, Patrick Smith, and Patrick Smith. 2012. The Trouble with Higher Education : A Critical Examination of our Universities. Routledge. https://doi. org/10.4324/9780203866344
[32]
Leo Irakliotis and Sally Johnstone. 2014. Competency-based education pro- grams versus traditional data management. EDUCAUSE Review online 1 (May 2014). https://er.educause.edu/articles/2014/5/competencybased-education- programs-versus-traditional-data-management
[33]
Joint Task Force for Computing Curricula 2005. 2005. Computing Curricula 2005. Technical Report September. ACM / IEEE CS. 62 pages. https://www.acm.org/binaries/content/assets/education/curricula- recommendations/cc2005-march06final.pdf Backup Publisher: The Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), The Association for Information Systems (AIS), and The Computer Society (IEEE-CS) ISBN: 159593359X.
[34]
Panagiotis Kampylis, Yves Punie, Jim Devine, and others. 2015. Promoting effective digital-age learning-A European framework for digitally-competent educational organisations. Technical Report. Joint Research Centre (Seville site).
[35]
Declan Kennedy, Áine Hyland, and Norma Ryan. 2009. Learning outcomes and competencies. In Introducing Bologna objectives and tools. Number B 2.3--3. DUZ International, Cork, IRE, 59--76. https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/423a/ 3e8656c0990f516ca78ace21ec79eacf8440.pdf
[36]
Karoline Koeppen, Johannes Hartig, Eckhard Klieme, and Detlev Leutner. 2008. Current Issues in Competence Modeling and Assessment. Zeitschrift für Psycholo- gie / Journal of Psychology 216, 2 (Jan. 2008), 61--73. https://doi.org/10.1027/0044- 3409.216.2.61
[37]
Matthias Kramer, Peter Hubwieser, and Torsten Brinda. 2016. A Competency Structure Model of Object-Oriented Programming. In 2016 International Confer- ence on Learning and Teaching in Computing and Engineering (LaTICE). IEEE CS, Mumbai, India? 1--8. https://doi.org/10.1109/LaTiCE.2016.24
[38]
Kris Magnusson and John Osborne. 1990. The rise of competency-based education: A deconstructionist analysis. The Journal of Educational Thought (JET)/Revue de la Pensée Educative 24, 1 (April 1990), 5--13. Type: Journal Article.
[39]
Francesco Maiorana. 2019. Interdisciplinary Computing for STE (A) M: a low Floor high ceiling curriculum. Innovations, Technologies and Research in Education (2019), 37.
[40]
A. L. Mchenry, D. R. Depew, M. J. Dyrenfurth, D. D. Dunlap, D. A. Keating, T. G. Stanford, and G. Deloatch. 2005. Constructivism: The Learning Theory That Supports Competency Development of Engineers For Engineering Practice and Technology Leadership Through Graduate Education. In Proceedings of the 2005 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition. ASEE, Portland, OR. https://peer.asee.org/collections/10
[41]
B Mennecke and J Hoffer. 1992. The Implications of Group Development and History for Group Support System Theory and Practice. Small Group Research 23, 4 (1992), 524--572. Type: Journal Article.
[42]
Martin Mulder. 2017. Competence Theory and Research: A Synthesis. In Competence-based Vocational and Professional Education. Springer, Cham, 1071-- 1106. https://doi.org/10.1007/978--3--319--41713--4_50
[43]
Enrico Nardelli, Luca Forlizzi, Michael Lodi, Violetta Lonati, Claudio Mirolo, Mattia Monga, Alberto Montresor, and Anna Morpugo. 2017. Proposal for a national Informatics curriculum in the Italian school. Technical Report. National Interuniversity consortium for Informatics.
[44]
A. Nylén, M. Daniels, V. Isomöttönen, and R. McDermott. 2017. Open-ended projects opened up - aspects of openness. In 2017 IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference (FIE). 1--7. https://doi.org/10.1109/FIE.2017.8190510
[45]
Co-operation Organisation for Economic and Development. 2018. The future of education and skills: Education 2030. Directorate for Education and Skills, OECD Paris, France.
[46]
Arnold Pears and Lauri Malmi. 2009. Values and Objectives in Computing Education Research. ACM Transactions on Computing Education 9, 3 (Sept. 2009), 1--6. https://doi.org/10.1145/1594399.1594400
[47]
D. N. Perkins, Eileen Jay, and Shari Tishman. 1993. Beyond Abilities: A Dis- positional Theory of Thinking. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly 39, 1 (1993), 1--21. http://www.jstor.org/stable/23087298
[48]
Jean Piaget. 1976. Piaget's Theory. In Piaget and His School: A Reader in Develop- mental Psychology, Bärbel Inhelder, Harold H. Chipman, and Charles Zwingmann (Eds.). Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg, 11--23. https://doi.org/10.1007/978--3--642- 46323--5_2
[49]
Eetu Pikkarainen. 2014. Competence as a Key Concept of Educational Theory: A Semiotic Point of View. Journal of Philosophy of Education 48, 4 (Nov. 2014), 621--636. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467--9752.12080
[50]
Katherine C. Powell and Cody J. Kalina. 2009. Cognitive and Social Construc- tivism: Developing Tools for an Effective Classroom. Education 130, 2 (2009), 241--250. Publisher: Project Innovation, Inc.
[51]
Mihaela Sabin, Hala Alrumaih, and John Imipagliazzo. 2018. A Competency-based Approach toward Curricular Guidelines for Information Technology Education. In 2018 Global Engineering Education Conference. IEEE, Tenerife, 1214--1221. https: //doi.org/10.1109/EDUCON.2018.8363368
[52]
Mihaela Sabin, Svetlana Peltsverger, Bill Paterson, Ming Zhang, and Hala Alru- maih. 2017. IT2017 Report: Putting It to Work. In Proceedings of the 18th Annual Conference on Information Technology Education (SIGITE '17). ACM, New York, NY, USA, 95--96. https://doi.org/10.1145/3125659.3125672
[53]
Deborah L. Schussler. 2006. Defining Dispositions: Wading Through Murky Waters. The Teacher Educator 41, 4 (March 2006), 251--268. https://doi.org/10. 1080/08878730609555387
[54]
James Shiveley and Thomas Misco. 2010. 'But How Do I Know About Their Atti- tudes and Beliefs'?: A Four-Step Process for Integrating and Assessing Disposi- tions in Teacher Education. The Clearing House: A Journal of Educational Strategies, Issues and Ideas 83, 1 (Jan. 2010), 9--14. https://doi.org/10.1080/00098650903267669
[55]
IEEE Computer Society. 2014. Software Engineering Competency Model (SWECOM). Technical Report Version 1.0. https://www.computer.org/web/peb/swecom
[56]
Angela Stoof, Rob L. Martens, and Jeroen JG Van Merriënboer. 2000. What is competence? A constructivist approach as a way out of confusion. Onderwijs Research Dagen (ORD), Leiden, The Netherlands (2000).
[57]
Miho TAGUMA, Miho Senior Analyst, Eva FERON, and LIM Meow Hwee. 2018. Future of Education and Skills 2030: Conceptual Learning Framework. (2018).
[58]
Cara Tang, Cindy Tucker, Christian Servin, Markus Geissler, and Melissa Stange. 2020. Curricular Guidance for Associate-Degree Cybersecurity Programs. In Proceedings of the 51st ACM Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education. 1285--1285.
[59]
Scientific United Nations Educational and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). 2011. UNESCO ICT competency framework for teachers. (2011). Publisher: UNESCO, Paris, France.
[60]
Marcel Van der Klink and Jo Boon. 2002. The investigation of competencies within professional domains. Human Resource Development International 5, 4 (2002), 411--424.
[61]
Marcel Van der Klink, Jo Boon, and Kathleen Schlusmans. 2007. Competences and Vocational Higher Education: Now and in Future. European journal of vocational training 40, 1 (2007), 67--82.
[62]
Rebecca Vivian and Katrina Falkner. 2019. Identifying Teachers? Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge for Computer Science in the Primary Years. In Proceedings of the 2019 ACM Conference on International Computing Education Research. 147--155.
[63]
Richard A. Voorhees. 2001. Competency-Based Learning Models: A Necessary Future. New Directions for Institutional Research 2001, 110 (2001), 5--13. https: //doi.org/10.1002/ir.7
[64]
Riina Vuorikari, Yves Punie, Stephanie Carretero Gomez, Godelieve Van Den Brande, and others. 2016. DigComp 2.0: The digital competence framework for citizens. Update phase 1: The conceptual reference model. Technical Report. Joint Research Centre (Seville site).
[65]
L. S. Vygotski?? and Michael Cole. 1978. Mind in society: the development of higher psychological processes. Harvard University Press, Cambridge.
[66]
Leslie Waguespack and Babb. 2019. Toward Visualizing Computing Curric- ula: The Challenge of Competency. In Information Systems Education Journal (ISEDJ), Vol. 17 n4. ISCAP, Cleveland, OH, 51--69. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ EJ1219541.pdf
[67]
Leslie Waguespack, Heikki Topi, Stephen Frezza, Jeffry Babb, Linda Marshall, Shingo Takada, Gerrit van der Veer, and Arnold Pears. 2019. Adopting Compe- tency Mindful of Professionalism in Baccalaureate Computing Curricula. In 2019 Proceedings of the EDSIGCON Conference, Vol. 5 n4955. ISCAP, Cleveland, OH, 17. http://proc.iscap.info/2019/pdf/4955.pdf

Cited By

View all

Index Terms

  1. Designing Computer Science Competency Statements: A Process and Curriculum Model for the 21st Century

    Recommendations

    Comments

    Information & Contributors

    Information

    Published In

    cover image ACM Conferences
    ITiCSE-WGR '20: Proceedings of the Working Group Reports on Innovation and Technology in Computer Science Education
    June 2020
    254 pages
    ISBN:9781450382939
    DOI:10.1145/3437800
    Permission to make digital or hard copies of all or part of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are not made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage and that copies bear this notice and the full citation on the first page. Copyrights for components of this work owned by others than ACM must be honored. Abstracting with credit is permitted. To copy otherwise, or republish, to post on servers or to redistribute to lists, requires prior specific permission and/or a fee. Request permissions from [email protected]

    Sponsors

    Publisher

    Association for Computing Machinery

    New York, NY, United States

    Publication History

    Published: 25 December 2020

    Permissions

    Request permissions for this article.

    Check for updates

    Author Tags

    1. cc2020
    2. competencies
    3. cs2013
    4. curriculum guidelines

    Qualifiers

    • Research-article

    Conference

    ITiCSE '20
    Sponsor:

    Acceptance Rates

    Overall Acceptance Rate 552 of 1,613 submissions, 34%

    Contributors

    Other Metrics

    Bibliometrics & Citations

    Bibliometrics

    Article Metrics

    • Downloads (Last 12 months)160
    • Downloads (Last 6 weeks)9
    Reflects downloads up to 15 Sep 2024

    Other Metrics

    Citations

    Cited By

    View all

    View Options

    Get Access

    Login options

    View options

    PDF

    View or Download as a PDF file.

    PDF

    eReader

    View online with eReader.

    eReader

    Media

    Figures

    Other

    Tables

    Share

    Share

    Share this Publication link

    Share on social media