Programming for a Networked World

Want to learn the basics of computer programming in a fun and innovative way? This course introduces computer programming using an educational block-based visual programming environment called NetsBlox (https://editor.netsblox.org/), emphasizing modern computer science concepts like networking, the internet, and distributed computing. The curriculum is hands-on, focusing on translating ideas into working computer programs and developing a mastery of practical computational literacy. After completing this course, you will have a solid foundation to learn professional languages like Python, Java, etc. The course is especially suitable for K12 teachers and students who want to get a gentle introduction to computer science.

• Introduction
• Introduction to the course, to block-based programming and to the primary tool used called NetsBlox
• Custom Blocks, Events and RPCs
• Introduction to custom blocks, events and Remote Procedure Calls (RPC)
• Loops and Lists
• Introduction to iteration (loops), scoping variables and lists
• Structured Data
• Working with multi-dimensional lists
• Distributed Programming
• Introduction to distributed programming using message passing
• Text Analysis
• Working with text