Computer Science Department

University at Albany

Class Expectations

Describe, in three pages, what you expect to learn from this course.

Yes, I know that this course is a CSI major requirement and you may have to take it regardless of your own learning objectives. I am asking you to consider and describe your own learning objectives now for three reasons chiefly.

First, you--not me--are ultimately responsible for your own education (in this course or any other) and should be explicit about what you hope to get out of the course. In effect, you should write a "learning contract" with yourself!

Second, by taking charge of your own course of study, you can fill in any gaps that I may leave in the curriculum. After all, there are only so many class sessions and there is so much to examine! Given this, what specific subjects relating to the impact of computing do you especially want to analyze?

Third, this course is quite topical, sometimes even improvisational. Consequently, the course content is never fixed. If there are areas that I have overlooked that many of you want to examine, I can probably accommodate your curiosity, if warned early enough.

In discussing your expectations, please assess your own knowledgeability of the subject matter.

In addition, please assess your own writing and verbal skills.

Clearly, none of you are novices in using computers or in observing the use of computers. How knowledgeable, then, are you of the technology and its social impact? Are you concerned that the widespread use of computers seems to have prompted a number of ethical dilemmas? Similarly, how comfortable are you in writing? Do you have an established writing regimen? Are you pleased with your writing style?

This assignment, like all others for this class, should be typed and double spaced. Although this is an ungraded "warm up" exercise, I will take your expectations very seriously.

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Last updated: 5/10/09