Introduction to Computer Science Course

What you will learn in 7 lessons

1. 1

   Computational Thinking and Problem Solving

   Start here

   Break problems into steps with decomposition, abstraction and pattern recognition, and express solutions as algorithms in pseudocode and flowcharts.

   5 learning goals

   What you will learn

   1. 1.Explain what computer science is and how computational thinking works
   2. 2.Break down and simplify problems
   3. 3.Design algorithms and write them in pseudocode
   4. 4.Represent, trace and test algorithms with flowcharts
   5. 5.Build first programs with block-based code
2. 2

   Binary and Data Representation

   Convert between decimal, binary and hexadecimal, and explain how computers represent integers, real numbers, text, images and sound as bits.

   6 learning goals

   What you will learn

   1. 1.Count and convert with bits, binary and hexadecimal
   2. 2.Represent whole numbers with a fixed number of bits
   3. 3.Represent real numbers with binary fractions and floating point
   4. 4.Represent text with character codes
   5. 5.Represent images and sound as data
   6. 6.Compress data with lossless and lossy methods
3. 3

   How Computers Work

   Describe the main hardware components and the fetch-decode-execute cycle, and explain how the operating system, programs and memory work together.

   5 learning goals

   What you will learn

   1. 1.Describe how a computer system is organized
   2. 2.Explain how the processor carries out instructions
   3. 3.Explain how programs become instructions the processor can run
   4. 4.Explain how computers store data in memory and storage
   5. 5.Explain how the operating system makes hardware and programs work together
4. 4

   Searching, Sorting and Efficiency

   Trace classic searching and sorting algorithms, compare how their running time grows with input size and argue that an algorithm is correct.

   5 learning goals

   What you will learn

   1. 1.Search a list step by step
   2. 2.Sort a list with bubble sort and selection sort
   3. 3.Sort faster with merge sort
   4. 4.Count steps and compare how running times grow
   5. 5.Argue correctness and choose the right algorithm
5. 5

   Programming Languages and Paradigms

   Explain how high-level code becomes machine instructions and compare imperative, object-oriented, functional and declarative programming styles.

   6 learning goals

   What you will learn

   1. 1.Explain how high-level code becomes instructions a processor runs
   2. 2.Read code by its syntax and its meaning
   3. 3.Explain how languages handle types and memory
   4. 4.Organize programs in the imperative and object-oriented styles
   5. 5.Describe functional and declarative programming
   6. 6.Compare paradigms and choose a language for a task
6. 6

   How the Internet Works

   Explain how data travels across the internet in packets, how addresses and names are resolved and how layered protocols deliver web pages and messages.

   5 learning goals

   What you will learn

   1. 1.Describe the internet and how data crosses it in packets
   2. 2.Find computers on the internet by address and name
   3. 3.Explain how layered protocols deliver data reliably
   4. 4.Explain how the web and other applications run on the internet
   5. 5.Explain who runs the internet and how it is governed
7. 7

   Computing Ethics

   Analyze the social impact of computing, including privacy, security, intellectual property, bias in automated systems and sustainability, and apply ethical reasoning to technology choices.

   6 learning goals

   What you will learn

   1. 1.Reason about the ethics of technology
   2. 2.Protect privacy and stay safe online
   3. 3.Respect intellectual property and use licenses correctly
   4. 4.Make computing fair and inclusive
   5. 5.Assess the environmental impact of computing
   6. 6.Act as a responsible computing professional