Computer Science Curricula 2023
Amruth N. Kumar & Rajendra K. Raj & Sherif G. Aly & Monica D. Anderson & Brett A. Becker & Richard L. Blumenthal & Eric Eaton & Susan L. Epstein & Michael Goldweber & Pankaj Jalote & Douglas Lea & Michael Oudshoorn & Marcelo Pias & Susan Reiser & Christian Servin & Rahul Simha & Titus Winters & and Qiao Xiang
Quotes & Excerpts

CS2023 is the latest version of computer science curricular guidelines, produced by a joint task force of the ACM, IEEE Computer Society, and AAAI. The following is a summary of significant issues of the day and how they have been addressed in CS2023 curricular guidelines:

  • The discipline continues to evolve. The Body of Knowledge consisting of seventeen knowledge areas has been revised and updated.

  • The discipline continues to grow. Topics that every graduate must know have been circumscribed as CS Core and kept to a minimum. Topics recommended for in-depth study have been labeled KA Core.

  • It is increasingly difficult for programs to be all things to all people. Programs can now select the knowledge areas on which to focus. The knowledge areas, when coherently chosen, define the competency area(s) of the program.

  • Societal and ethical concerns have risen sharply. The Society, Ethics, and the Profession (SEP) knowledge area is now an integral part of most knowledge areas of the curriculum.

  • The role of mathematics has increased. Additional hours have been allocated to mathematics and flexibility has been provided for coverage of the requirements in the curriculum.

  • The need for professional dispositions is increasingly being recognized. Professional dispositions appropriate for each knowledge area have been listed and justified.

  • Interest is growing among educators in a competency model of the curriculum. A Competency Framework has been provided for programs to create their own competency model of the curriculum tailored to local needs.

  • Generative AI is poised to impact computer science education. A chapter has been included that addresses how Generative AI could propel further innovation in computer science education.

The CS2023 knowledge model consists of 17 knowledge areas, listed in alphabetical order of their abbreviation:

  • Artificial Intelligence (AI)
  • Algorithmic Foundations (AL)
  • Architecture and Organization (AR)
  • Data Management (DM)
  • Foundations of Programming Languages (FPL)
  • Graphics and Interactive Techniques (GIT)
  • Networking and Communication (NC)
  • Operating Systems (OS)
  • Parallel and Distributed Computing (PDC)
  • Software Development Fundamentals (SDF)
  • Software Engineering (SE)
  • Security (SEC)
  • Society, Ethics, and the Profession (SEP) 30
  • Human-Computer Interaction (HCI)
  • Mathematical and Statistical Foundations (MSF)
  • Systems Fundamentals (SF)
  • Specialized Platform Development (SPD)
  • A knowledge model of a curriculum is structured as a set of knowledge areas: Knowledge model = { Knowledge areas }
  • A knowledge area is a set of related knowledge units: Knowledge area = { Knowledge units }
  • A knowledge unit is a set of related topics and a set of learning outcomes for those topics: Knowledge unit = { Topics } + { Learning outcomes }