"Teach your children well" value-neutrality and CS202X

Abstract

Beginning with the work of the ACM Curricular Committee on Computer Science in the early 1960s, and continuing approximately every decade since, ACM members have contributed to establishing curricular guidelines for undergraduate computer science education [1, 2]. This work is continuing with the recent formation of the CS202X Steering Committee, which is tasked with revising the recommendations for the next decade [3]. As such reports are reflect the work of their associated Steering Committees and the input of the computing community, "the reports are documents that reflect their time" [6]. Furthermore, curricular reports are not value-neutral, nor should they be (see below). Instead, as SIGCAS members, we should attempt to infuse into the CS202X curriculum the values we expect computer science graduates to exhibit throughout their computing careers. Naturally, what specific values should be included is up to our membership and, as a individual member of SIGCAS, I'll explore this topic in the remainder of this Parting Opinion column.