The computing and composition as an integrated subject in the secondary school curriculum

Many students enter college lacking basic problem solving and communication skills. The situation is even more exacerbated for students from urban high schools. We have disseminated a "computing and composition" approach, originally implemented in firstyear college programming and English composition courses, to a high school curriculum in an urban setting. The Computing and Composition Project served students attending four Newark, New Jersey high schools, each serving populations with different profiles of academic performance. The instructional program included the development of a series of case studies based on the state high school science and mathematics content standards and the specific curriculum in place at the schools. These learning modules were designed to emphasize the skills required to solve problems and learn the syntax of the C++ programming language. Teamwork was an important part of this project. An important component of the instructional method included a problem solving and program development process to assist beginning computer science students fulfill the complex, multiple tasks of programming. After working through the process, students will have produced a carefully designed and fully documented solution to a problem. In the composition component, the writing process was the basic procedure through which students gain skills in and an understanding of what is necessary to produce effective expository prose written to respond to specific problems. Measurements of success and problem areas in the implementation of this program will be presented and methods for overcoming obstacles in such programs suggested.