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ComputeTY 2012 - second-level students demonstrate their computing prowess

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ComputeTY 2012 - second-level students demonstrate their computing prowess

IASI award

This year, over 400 second level students from around the country attended the School of Computing’s ‘ComputeTY 2012’.  The course, now in its seventh year, is open to transition years from all around the country, and to date, over 3,000 students have taken part.

This year, students had the opportunity to plan a theme for their website,lay it out, using text, graphics and videos.  They learned the basics of HTML and even advanced to more complicated technologies such as CSS and Javascript to add extra style.

Once the structure of their website was designed, the students progressed to more complex design components, such as web banners and animated GIFs using graphic design tools such as GIMP. One of the reported highlights of the week for the students was capturing, processing and embedding their very own videos for their sites.

A survey taken at the end of ComputeTY highlighted some interesting facts:

  • 79.6% of the students said that they had learned far more than they expected during the course. In particular they found coding and customising their website most enjoyable.
  • 63.6% didn't consider a computing degree before the taking the course but after completing ComputeTY
  • 80% said they would consider studying Computing at DCU as a choice for college.

These responses indicate that once students are exposed to computing technologies it allows them to consider opportunities they may never have thought of previously.  It was also interesting to note that this target group are very involved in social networking.  Approximately 80% of the 400 students have a personal Facebook page that they use regularly. 67.4% of the entire group said they would tap into the School of Computing’s facebook page to see what’s happening in the School.

Mike Scott Head of School of Computing said, ‘This programme has run very successfully over the past seven years and is in great demand from secondary schools.  It gives us a chance to help promote computing education to students from all backgrounds of society.  Computing and digital technology is a crucial and productive element to the success of Ireland’s future and an important learning tool in our young people’s lives.  Thanks to CNGL (Centre for Next Generation Localisation) and the Faculty of Engineering and Computing for helping fund this project year after year and allowing us to continue to run it.  It’s important we continue to support and encourage our future students into the world of computing and digital technology’.

To see their imaginative sites, please visit:

Ina: http://student.computing.dcu.ie/~ctyd113/
Emma Delaney: http://student.computing.dcu.ie/~ctyb122/
Connor Cullen-Young: http://student.computing.dcu.ie/~ctya118/

John Pendlebury, a tutor on the Web Design Stream, expressed his surprise at the extent of creativity and versatility of some of the students’ websites, with themes which included ‘Folklore of Cooley’, ‘The History of the Piano’, ‘Music production and remixes’ and ‘The Art of Music, Life and Creativity’. He said, “From the beginning, I was really impressed by how seriously the students took the course.  We maintained a very informal and relaxed atmosphere in class and this allowed everyone to have a lot of fun, whilst still learning valuable skills. While some of the students enjoyed playing around with web design, others enjoyed the technical side of web development and programming, and others enjoyed writing and directing their own short movies.  I was most impressed though, by the amount of social conscience that the students displayed, with topics ranging from combating depression and bullying to racism.  One student created a website on how third world children are exploited by the shoe making industry.  I thoroughly enjoyed teaching this course; it was a great experience”.

Ina Pondoc achieved 1st prize for her website ‘The Art of music, art and life’.  She designed a beautifully creative and impressive piece of work which included a ‘stop- go’ animated video and incorporated impressive graphics. Ina said, “I learned that planning is key and this has a strong impact on the overall outcome of the website.  On the ‘coding’ side of things, it was very interesting to learn how to make your website work cross-browser.  I can only fathom now, how people make their websites work flawlessly with different browsers, different version of different browsers or even different version of browsers on different screen sizes.  It’s a bit mind boggling!”  When asked about her video she created from start to finish she went on to say, “I created my video using Windows Live Movie maker.  It may not be as professional as ‘After Effects’ or ‘iMovie’ but it has a friendly user-interface, which is great for working quickly under a deadline.  And quite frankly, it does most of the job for you, which I found really useful!  My video reflected the thought process concerning the theme of my website.”

On Stream 2, an Introduction to Java Computer Programming, there was a 50% increase in uptake this year compared to last year, showing that many students have already gone past the technology required to create websites and are more interested in expanding their ICT knowledge and experience. In fact many schools are now introducing a ‘Technology’ module into their teaching and as a result, students are becoming more proficient with programming and computing.

Robert Hanrahan the tutor for the 4 weeks was highly impressed with the number of students who were very keen to learn Java programming. He said “Initially they were taught how to create, compile and run java programs. They wrote methods so that the next version of their programme would use less lines of code and would be more improved in terms of design.  They participated in competitions during the week and this helped drive motivation and enthusiasm. By the end of the week the students felt that programming wasn’t as difficult as they first thought.   As a result, the students became more confident and highly motivated”. 

If you would like more information for next year’s ComputeTY programme, contact Christine Stears at DCU Faculty of Engineering and Computing.  Christine.stears@computing.dcu.ie or telephone 7005237.