NSF/IEEE-TCPP curriculum initiative on parallel and distributed computing - Core topics for undergraduates

Abstract

This special session will be our first formal curriculum committee report. A working group from IEEE Technical Committee on Parallel Processing (TCPP), National Science Foundation (NSF), and the sister communities, including ACM, has taken up proposing curriculum for computer science (CS) and computer engineering (CE) undergraduates on parallel and distributed computing. The goal of this committee has been to propose a core curriculum for CS/CE undergraduates, with the premise that every such undergraduate should achieve a specified skill level regarding PDC-related topics as a result of required coursework. The working group has deliberated upon various topics and subtopics, agreed upon their learning outcomes and level of coverage, has identified where in current core courses these could be introduced, and has provided examples of how they might be taught. Limited reviews have been carried out by selected stakeholders. Early adopters in Spring-11 will be employing the proposed curriculum. In this session, multiple committee members will introduce the community to our curriculum initiative, its year-long activities, our proposed curriculum, and the current and future roadmap. This session is also intended (i) to discuss and collect direct feedback from the community, which would be timely and will influence our subsequent round of revisions and mid-course correction, and (ii) to further develop a community of interest.