Using C programming as a vehicle to overcome barriers

Although the C language is fairly new, its increasing dominance in systems and applications software and the ensuing industry expectations have resulted in curricular changes in engineering programming throughout the country. Obstacles to its use, particularly in the lower division are not insignificant. Difficulties include: the perception that the language is excessively difficult, lack of code readability, texts written with upper division computer science topics in mind, and difficulty in finding applications that are appropriate. Overcoming these obstacles serves the immediate needs in the classroom and answers industry demands. Methods of overcoming these difficulties can lead to benefits beyond the immediate needs of a programming course. A course that combines expectations that go beyond programming with the more standard ones is described. By approaching the course with a planned mixture of learning styles including instructor-led laboratory experiences and lectures into which student involvement is extensively structured, the needs of different students, including underrepresented minorities, can be met. By using UNIX-based workstations as a programming platform, the programming class can be used as an important basis of experience for upper division courses in individual disciplines that are using the computing power of the workstations for complex CAD/CAE applications, such as microelectronic systems design.