Scripting and Programming Foundations (edX)

Scripting and Programming Foundations (edX)

This course is an introduction to programming theory, covering basic elements such as variables, data types, flow control, and design concepts. The course is language-agnostic in nature, ending in a survey of languages and introduces the distinction between interpreted and compiled languages.

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Computer programs are abundant in many people's lives today, carrying out applications on smartphones, tablets, and laptops, powering businesses, helping cars drive and planes fly, and much more. The course introduces computational thinking and algorithms, a sequence of instructions that solves a problem. Computational or mathematical thinking became increasingly important throughout the industrial age to enable people to successfully live and work. In the information age, computational thinking and algorithms will continue to be increasingly critical for work and everyday life.
Beyond business and personal computing devices such as PCs, tablets, and smartphones, embedded computers exist invisibly in nearly anything electrical today (e.g., TVs, cars, printers, thermostats, satellites, etc.) and require scripting and programming of instructions to perform efficiently.
This course is part of the Introduction to Information Technology MicroBachelors
Prerequisites:
None ... However, Information Technology Foundations is recommended.

What you'll learn
In this course, you will learn about the following concepts:

  • The basic computer programming elements, including data types, constants, variables, operators, and expressions
  • Basic constructs of programming including functions and control structure
  • Interpreting algorithms
  • The steps of the software design process
  • How to compare various scripting and programming languages
Go to Class
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