New Computer Science Department Adds Courses in Computer Programming

The addition of a Computer Science Department came at the perfect time for Krish Malhotra ’21, who plans to study computer science and economics in college. After taking the one computer programming course Tower Hill offered as a sophomore, he was eager to learn more. So when he found out the school was expanding its computer science offerings, he was thrilled.

 

“I’ve only learned Java, so I’m just excited to learn a new language,” he said. “It’s kind of like learning an actual language. I’m excited to be bilingual in computer science.”

 

The new department will offer four courses during the 2019-2020 school year: Introduction to Computer Science, Programming and Algorithms, Data Structures and Advanced Computer Science Principles. Bill Soistmann, who joined the Tower Hill faculty in the spring of 2019 as a long-term substitute, will head the department. He brings with him more than 20 years of teaching and industry experience.

 

“We’re going to start off with four courses that we’ve put together: an introduction to computer science that will introduce students to the different areas that come with computer science, and then there are some more in-depth programming classes,” Soistmann said. “Two different tracks, really: one for students who might want to take the AP computer science exam, and one for students who aren’t necessarily interested in that but want to learn about the same material: programming, data structures, algorithms.”

 

 

“At the core is this philosophy that all professions in the future will have some component of technology and maybe even computer science,” Pisapia said. “We really think that a basic understanding of computer science is going to be a prerequisite to many careers. We believe that the type of problem solving you do in computer science and the way you solve problems is critically important to know and understand for many of the careers of the future.”

 

Adding computer science to the curriculum also aligns with Tower Hill’s strategic plan.

“In looking at our strategic plan, we really try to understand what world we’re preparing our students for—what skill sets will be necessary for them to succeed,” Pisapia said. “Answers that kept coming up were related to computer science. Studies show that the people who understand computer science concepts succeed at a rate much greater than those who do not. So we really looked hard at our commitment to Multa Bene Facta—our commitment to the best preparation in the world for college and beyond—and computer science was a real missing piece.”

 

For Soistmann, learning computer science is about access. While the potential for jobs in computer science is great, he said, it’s more important for everyday citizens to have an understanding of how technology works.

 

“It might sound like an overstatement, but if we don’t learn how to tell the computers what to do, someone else will tell them what to do, and they will tell us what to do,” he said. “I really think it’s about access. It’s about not being controlled by the machines, as silly as that sounds. Because someone tells the computers and robots what to do, and our students ought to learn how to do that.”

 

The benefits of learning and understanding computer science concepts go beyond just knowing how the technology works, Pisapia said.

 

“It gives you problem-solving skills,” he said. “Really understanding how computers work gives you a new framework for attacking problems and creating solutions. Our ability to communicate is better. To manipulate computers to do and say and deliver messages, you have to be able to communicate. Increasingly leadership is also a skill. The ability to lead a business forward or create a company, increasingly that’s about creating the best technology solutions. Really when we’re talking about being on the leading edge of whatever field you choose, it will have something to do with technology.”

 

Learning computer science teaches students a new way to think, Soistmann said.

 

“My teaching philosophy is to let the students fail and learn,” Soistmann said. “I think students learn more by the mistakes they make than memorizing facts or being told all the answers. What I’m teaching, really, is problem solving, and teaching that requires that they try and fail, and try and fail, over and over again.”

Malhotra said he likes that computer science can be linked to many other subjects and fields.

 

“I like that computer science has the ability to be used in any field, even ones that people don’t usually think about—that’s the true power of it and where it can be utilized,” he said. “I think it can make everything more efficient, and I think people are starting to realize that now, and people want to have a background in it. I really like economics, and I think a computer science background would really help me in the future, linking it with econ.”

 

While teaching computer science is critically important, it doesn’t outweigh the importance of subjects like English, history and math, Pisapia said.

 

“In no way are we focused solely on STEM as a school,” he said. “STEM is not the only pathway. We’re trying to create well-rounded individuals, but without computer science, I don’t think we’d be hitting that mark. We were just really mindful of understanding what Multa Bene Facta would mean today and tomorrow.”