1 ---
2 type: article
3 identifier: uiuc-cs-education
4 title: Introductory computer science education at UIUC
5 description: A list of grievances regarding the CS program, primarily the introductory course, CS 124, at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
6 datestring: 2023-03-15
7 banner_image: /static/images/uiuc_bardeen_quad.jpg
8 links:
9    Email chain, reverse chronology, including letter to HLC: /static/documents/uiuc-cs-complaints.pdf
10    CS 124 syllabus: https://web.archive.org/web/20230221111124/https://www.cs124.org/syllabus/Spring2023
11    ECE 120, a better CS course than "Intro to CS I": https://ece.illinois.edu/academics/courses/ece120
12 ---
13
14 This is a list of grievances regarding the CS program, in particular CS 124,
15 "Intro to Computer Science I", the required introductory CS course, at
16 University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Under advisement of several software
17 engineering professionals, I wrote a letter concerning these grievances, sent
18 to:
19
20 - **Jonathan Makela** (Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs, *The Grainger College of Engineering*)
21 - **Nancy Amato** (Department Head, *Department of Computer Science*)
22 - **Margaret Fleck** (Director of Undergraduate Programs, *Department of Computer Science*)
23 - **Eric Shaffer** (Associate Director of Undergraduate Programs, *Department of Computer Science*)
24 - **Geoffrey Challen** (Professor, *CS 124*)
25
26 I'm publishing this following decided inaction from the CS department and
27 Grainger College of Engineering regarding these valid grievances. As a student
28 paying exorbitant amounts of money for a high-quality education, it's my
29 responsibility to hold the university accountable for unfairness and
30 low-quality instruction out of line with their purported ideals.
31
32 <figcaption>Unfortunately, universities can often get away with shoddy quality
33 like this because students don't know what they don't know. How can someone
34 authoritatively make judgements on course and content quality without extensive
35 prior knowledge and experience with the subject? CS 124 has been like this for
36 several years now, and I'm sure if I weren't forced into CS 124 it probably
37 would've been several more years before anyone made a serious formal
38 complaint.</figcaption>
39
40 ## Grievances
41
42 The following is a summary of the grievances outlined in the original letter.
43
44 ### Grievance 1: Method of delivery, value of the course
45
46 CS 124, considered "traditional delivery", is entirely online and has no
47 lectures, discussions, or labs, and quizzes are proctored remotely over Zoom.
48 Stripping away in-person interaction between students deprives them of
49 development of real world communication and team building skills. Additionally,
50 the professor exposes the same course materials on the Internet for free. The
51 course is required of CS majors, and there is no deduction in tuition in
52 accordance with the low-quality online-only format.
53
54 ### Grievance 2: Name-content disparity, validity as a CS course, and status as a program requirement
55
56 CS 124, "Intro to Computer Science I", is dishonestly named and advertised as a
57 computer science course when it is, in fact, not. It would be more aptly named
58 "Intro to Java Programming" (there is a difference between computer science and
59 computer programming). The course inadequately covers the theory, math, and
60 architecture of computers and computer programs, i.e. real computer science.
61 Students will not fully understand the ramifications of the code they write.
62 There is little justification for explicitly declaring it a computer science
63 course or requiring it of incoming CS majors.
64
65 <figcaption>Ironically,
66 <a href="https://courses.illinois.edu/schedule/2023/fall/ECE/120">ECE 120</a> and
67 <a href="https://courses.illinois.edu/schedule/2023/fall/ECE/220">220</a> are better CS
68 courses than "Intro to Computer Science I".</figcaption>
69
70 ### Grievance 3: Choice of programming language
71
72 CS 124 is taught and tested in Java, a computer programming language
73 unconducive to learning computer science, and is the only course in the UIUC CS
74 sequence that uses Java. A student may have extensive prior programming
75 experience (the case for many CS majors) but may be forced to take the course
76 if they don't know Java—the programming language tested on the proficiency
77 exam—making the course little more than a hindrance to higher education.
78
79 ---
80
81 **In essence, beginning the Computer Science main sequence with this course as
82 it is now is nothing but a disservice to students paying tens of thousands for
83 a high-quality education. CS 124 needs to transition to in-person delivery and
84 needs to be turned into an actual CS course that uses C or C++, akin to
85 [128](https://courses.illinois.edu/schedule/2023/fall/CS/128).  Otherwise, the
86 course should be redesignated as an explicit intro programming course (e.g.
87 "Java Programming") and made "optional but recommended" of main sequence CS
88 students.**
89
90 ## Official Response
91
92 The very long-winded nonresponse I received from Associate Dean Makela and
93 Professor Challen are to the following effect for each grievance:
94
95 1. The switch to the all-online delivery method was made during the COVID
96    pandemic and it was kept afterwards for CS 124 because the course
97    coordinators were comfortable with it, and student performance improved by
98    most metrics. There are a variety of course delivery methods utilized within
99    the university and more than enough resources are provided for CS 124.
100 2. Teaching real computer science in CS 124 would make the course far too
101    difficult for students, and real computer science is outside the scope of an
102    introductory course.
103 3. C/C++ are too hard for CS students to learn, and Java and Kotlin are
104    provided to students to offer exposure to more programming languages. If a
105    student doesn't want to take the course, they should just learn Java to test
106    out of the course. Also, the course instructor really likes Kotlin.
107
108 The only real action taken was the opening of booked locations on campus during
109 quiz times, even though the quiz is still proctored over Zoom.  Several
110 concerns raised in the first email remain unaddressed.  The official response
111 (or lack of response) to these matters is highly unsatisfactory and leads me to
112 question the competency and integrity of the institution.
113
114 To the official responses, I offer the following rebuttals:
115
116 1. Most other courses have returned to in-person delivery without a hitch and
117    there is no reason why the CS department can't do the same.  Improvement in
118    student performance is easily attributable to plagiarism, or the lack of
119    academic/institutional integrity. The response does not address the concern
120    regarding professional development, or quality expectations given course
121    pricing.
122 2. Many students entering the CS program already have a good idea of how
123    computers and computer programs work, or have written code prior. Holding
124    back on exposing students to foundational computer systems knowledge hurts
125    them in the long run as it forces them to internalize facts and methods of
126    computer programming without underlying explanation—akin to having students
127    try to learn calculus without prior knowledge of algebra—and forces them to
128    later readjust their understandings of the subject when they are exposed to
129    those fundamentals. The rationale for teaching "introductory computer
130    science" in this highly abstracted manner is the result of the pervasion of
131    the myth than anyone can or should learn to write code, even though software
132    engineering and computer science are—and should be—highly specialized
133    fields. The justification for teaching the course in the manner of a
134    computer programing course is weak, and the dishonesty of calling it a
135    computer science course remains unaddressed. Even as a computer programming
136    course, the course is pitiful and clearly not worth what is paid in tuition.
137 3. A lot goes into learning a computer programming language, even if you have
138    already written code and understand computer science concepts. If the course
139    isn't explicitly a programming course, the expectation that a student should
140    learn an entire programming language to take a proficiency exam is
141    completely absurd, especially when no other course in the program requires
142    it. Regardless, Java/Kotlin aren't great choices for teaching computer
143    science because they are not analogs to machine code like C/C++ are; a lot
144    of what the programmer writes is highly abstracted and handled behind the
145    scenes, especially in the case of Kotlin.
146
147 ## Closing
148
149 In an attempt to encourage action, these concerns have been forwarded to the
150 Higher Learning Commission, the organization that grants accreditation status
151 to UIUC. You can find a PDF with the email chain (which much of this article is
152 adapted from), in reverse chronological order, including the complaint sent to
153 the HLC, [here](/static/documents/uiuc-cs-complaints.pdf). It contains most of
154 what's detailed here, along with some extra documentation.
155
156
157
1	---
2	type: article
3	identifier: uiuc-cs-education
4	title: Introductory computer science education at UIUC
5	description: A list of grievances regarding the CS program, primarily the introductory course, CS 124, at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
6	datestring: 2023-03-15
7	banner_image: /static/images/uiuc_bardeen_quad.jpg
8	links:
9	Email chain, reverse chronology, including letter to HLC: /static/documents/uiuc-cs-complaints.pdf
10	CS 124 syllabus: https://web.archive.org/web/20230221111124/https://www.cs124.org/syllabus/Spring2023
11	ECE 120, a better CS course than "Intro to CS I": https://ece.illinois.edu/academics/courses/ece120
12	---
13
14	This is a list of grievances regarding the CS program, in particular CS 124,
15	"Intro to Computer Science I", the required introductory CS course, at
16	University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Under advisement of several software
17	engineering professionals, I wrote a letter concerning these grievances, sent
18	to:
19
20	- Jonathan Makela (Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs, The Grainger College of Engineering)
21	- Nancy Amato (Department Head, Department of Computer Science)
22	- Margaret Fleck (Director of Undergraduate Programs, Department of Computer Science)
23	- Eric Shaffer (Associate Director of Undergraduate Programs, Department of Computer Science)
24	- Geoffrey Challen (Professor, CS 124)
25
26	I'm publishing this following decided inaction from the CS department and
27	Grainger College of Engineering regarding these valid grievances. As a student
28	paying exorbitant amounts of money for a high-quality education, it's my
29	responsibility to hold the university accountable for unfairness and
30	low-quality instruction out of line with their purported ideals.
31
32	<figcaption>Unfortunately, universities can often get away with shoddy quality
33	like this because students don't know what they don't know. How can someone
34	authoritatively make judgements on course and content quality without extensive
35	prior knowledge and experience with the subject? CS 124 has been like this for
36	several years now, and I'm sure if I weren't forced into CS 124 it probably
37	would've been several more years before anyone made a serious formal
38	complaint.</figcaption>
39
40	## Grievances
41
42	The following is a summary of the grievances outlined in the original letter.
43
44	### Grievance 1: Method of delivery, value of the course
45
46	CS 124, considered "traditional delivery", is entirely online and has no
47	lectures, discussions, or labs, and quizzes are proctored remotely over Zoom.
48	Stripping away in-person interaction between students deprives them of
49	development of real world communication and team building skills. Additionally,
50	the professor exposes the same course materials on the Internet for free. The
51	course is required of CS majors, and there is no deduction in tuition in
52	accordance with the low-quality online-only format.
53
54	### Grievance 2: Name-content disparity, validity as a CS course, and status as a program requirement
55
56	CS 124, "Intro to Computer Science I", is dishonestly named and advertised as a
57	computer science course when it is, in fact, not. It would be more aptly named
58	"Intro to Java Programming" (there is a difference between computer science and
59	computer programming). The course inadequately covers the theory, math, and
60	architecture of computers and computer programs, i.e. real computer science.
61	Students will not fully understand the ramifications of the code they write.
62	There is little justification for explicitly declaring it a computer science
63	course or requiring it of incoming CS majors.
64
65	<figcaption>Ironically,
66	<a href="https://courses.illinois.edu/schedule/2023/fall/ECE/120">ECE 120</a> and
67	<a href="https://courses.illinois.edu/schedule/2023/fall/ECE/220">220</a> are better CS
68	courses than "Intro to Computer Science I".</figcaption>
69
70	### Grievance 3: Choice of programming language
71
72	CS 124 is taught and tested in Java, a computer programming language
73	unconducive to learning computer science, and is the only course in the UIUC CS
74	sequence that uses Java. A student may have extensive prior programming
75	experience (the case for many CS majors) but may be forced to take the course
76	if they don't know Java—the programming language tested on the proficiency
77	exam—making the course little more than a hindrance to higher education.
78
79	---
80
81	**In essence, beginning the Computer Science main sequence with this course as
82	it is now is nothing but a disservice to students paying tens of thousands for
83	a high-quality education. CS 124 needs to transition to in-person delivery and
84	needs to be turned into an actual CS course that uses C or C++, akin to
85	[128](https://courses.illinois.edu/schedule/2023/fall/CS/128). Otherwise, the
86	course should be redesignated as an explicit intro programming course (e.g.
87	"Java Programming") and made "optional but recommended" of main sequence CS
88	students.**
89
90	## Official Response
91
92	The very long-winded nonresponse I received from Associate Dean Makela and
93	Professor Challen are to the following effect for each grievance:
94
95	1. The switch to the all-online delivery method was made during the COVID
96	pandemic and it was kept afterwards for CS 124 because the course
97	coordinators were comfortable with it, and student performance improved by
98	most metrics. There are a variety of course delivery methods utilized within
99	the university and more than enough resources are provided for CS 124.
100	2. Teaching real computer science in CS 124 would make the course far too
101	difficult for students, and real computer science is outside the scope of an
102	introductory course.
103	3. C/C++ are too hard for CS students to learn, and Java and Kotlin are
104	provided to students to offer exposure to more programming languages. If a
105	student doesn't want to take the course, they should just learn Java to test
106	out of the course. Also, the course instructor really likes Kotlin.
107
108	The only real action taken was the opening of booked locations on campus during
109	quiz times, even though the quiz is still proctored over Zoom. Several
110	concerns raised in the first email remain unaddressed. The official response
111	(or lack of response) to these matters is highly unsatisfactory and leads me to
112	question the competency and integrity of the institution.
113
114	To the official responses, I offer the following rebuttals:
115
116	1. Most other courses have returned to in-person delivery without a hitch and
117	there is no reason why the CS department can't do the same. Improvement in
118	student performance is easily attributable to plagiarism, or the lack of
119	academic/institutional integrity. The response does not address the concern
120	regarding professional development, or quality expectations given course
121	pricing.
122	2. Many students entering the CS program already have a good idea of how
123	computers and computer programs work, or have written code prior. Holding
124	back on exposing students to foundational computer systems knowledge hurts
125	them in the long run as it forces them to internalize facts and methods of
126	computer programming without underlying explanation—akin to having students
127	try to learn calculus without prior knowledge of algebra—and forces them to
128	later readjust their understandings of the subject when they are exposed to
129	those fundamentals. The rationale for teaching "introductory computer
130	science" in this highly abstracted manner is the result of the pervasion of
131	the myth than anyone can or should learn to write code, even though software
132	engineering and computer science are—and should be—highly specialized
133	fields. The justification for teaching the course in the manner of a
134	computer programing course is weak, and the dishonesty of calling it a
135	computer science course remains unaddressed. Even as a computer programming
136	course, the course is pitiful and clearly not worth what is paid in tuition.
137	3. A lot goes into learning a computer programming language, even if you have
138	already written code and understand computer science concepts. If the course
139	isn't explicitly a programming course, the expectation that a student should
140	learn an entire programming language to take a proficiency exam is
141	completely absurd, especially when no other course in the program requires
142	it. Regardless, Java/Kotlin aren't great choices for teaching computer
143	science because they are not analogs to machine code like C/C++ are; a lot
144	of what the programmer writes is highly abstracted and handled behind the
145	scenes, especially in the case of Kotlin.
146
147	## Closing
148
149	In an attempt to encourage action, these concerns have been forwarded to the
150	Higher Learning Commission, the organization that grants accreditation status
151	to UIUC. You can find a PDF with the email chain (which much of this article is
152	adapted from), in reverse chronological order, including the complaint sent to
153	the HLC, [here](/static/documents/uiuc-cs-complaints.pdf). It contains most of
154	what's detailed here, along with some extra documentation.
155
156
157