Software and information technologies are becoming increasingly integrated and pervasive in human society and range from automated decision making and social media and entertainment, to running critical social and physical infrastructures like government programs, utilities, and financial institutions. As a result, there is a growing awareness of the need to develop professionals who will harness these technologies in fair and inclusive ways and use them to address global issues like health, water management, poverty, and human rights. In this regard, many academic researchers have expressed the need to complement traditional teaching of CS technical skills with computer and information ethics (computing for social good), as well as communication and leadership skills. In this paper, we describe our goals and some possible class activities we have developed and refined over the past few years with encouraging results, to help CS students understand the potential uses of computing for social good. In these carefully planned project assignments, we seamlessly integrate traditional approaches to develop technical skills with broader professional responsibility and soft skills. We then discuss the lessons learned from these activities and briefly outline future plans.
翻译:软件与信息技术正日益深入地渗透到人类社会,其应用范围从自动化决策、社交媒体与娱乐,到运行关键的社会与物理基础设施(如政府项目、公共事业和金融机构)。因此,人们日益认识到需要培养能公平包容地驾驭这些技术的专业人才,并利用它们应对健康、水资源管理、贫困和人权等全球性挑战。在此背景下,许多学术研究者呼吁在传统计算机科学技术技能教学之外,补充计算机伦理(社会公益计算)以及沟通与领导力技能。本文阐述了我们近年来开发并完善的一系列目标明确且成效可喜的课堂活动,旨在帮助计算机科学学生理解社会公益计算的潜在应用。在这些精心设计的项目任务中,我们将培养技术技能的传统方法无缝融入到更广泛的职业责任与软技能培养之中。最后,我们讨论了从这些活动中总结的经验教训,并简要概述了未来规划。