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Scaffolding Research Projects in Theory of Computing Courses

Ryan E. Dougherty

TL;DR

This paper massively scaffold this existing project and provides the experiences in running such a conference in the authors' own ToC course and massively scaffold this existing project.

Abstract

Theory of Computing (ToC) is an important course in CS curricula because of its connections to other CS courses as a foundation for them. Traditional ToC course grading schemes are mostly exam-based, and sometimes a small weight for traditional proof-type assignments. Recent work experimented with a new type of assignment, namely a ``mock conference'' project wherein students approach and present ToC problems as if they were submitting to a ``real'' CS conference. In this paper we massively scaffold this existing project and provide our experiences in running such a conference in our own ToC course.

Scaffolding Research Projects in Theory of Computing Courses

TL;DR

This paper massively scaffold this existing project and provides the experiences in running such a conference in the authors' own ToC course and massively scaffold this existing project.

Abstract

Theory of Computing (ToC) is an important course in CS curricula because of its connections to other CS courses as a foundation for them. Traditional ToC course grading schemes are mostly exam-based, and sometimes a small weight for traditional proof-type assignments. Recent work experimented with a new type of assignment, namely a ``mock conference'' project wherein students approach and present ToC problems as if they were submitting to a ``real'' CS conference. In this paper we massively scaffold this existing project and provide our experiences in running such a conference in our own ToC course.
Paper Structure (14 sections, 1 figure, 1 table)

This paper contains 14 sections, 1 figure, 1 table.

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Related Work
  3. Institutional and Course Context
  4. Project Design
  5. Example Project Description
  6. Course Resources
  7. Issues and Challenges
  8. Reflections
  9. What Worked Well
  10. What Did Not Work Well
  11. Limitations
  12. Implementation for Large ToC Courses
  13. Future Work and Recommendations
  14. Conclusion

Figures (1)

  • Figure 1: Overview of our scaffolded ToC course research project, including when plans, check-ins, drafts, reviews, and the final submission are due. Section lengths are not drawn exactly to scale.