"Boring formal methods" or "Sherlock Holmes deduction methods"?

2016/12/06 by Maria Spichkova, Spichkova, Maria
Computer Science · Engineering · #Computers and Society (cs.CY) #Experimental Learning in Engineering #FOS: Computer and information sciences #Intelligent Tutoring Systems and Adaptive Learning #Logic in Computer Science (cs.LO) #Teaching and Learning Programming

paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1612.01682

openalex publication_date 2016/12/06 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28

Abstract

This paper provides an overview of common challenges in teaching of logic and formal methods to Computer Science and IT students. We discuss our experiences from the course IN3050: Applied Logic in Engineering, introduced as a "logic for everybody" elective course at at TU Munich, Germany, to engage pupils studying Computer Science, IT and engineering subjects on Bachelor and Master levels. Our goal was to overcome the bias that logic and formal methods are not only very complicated but also very boring to study and to apply. In this paper, we present the core structure of the course, provide examples of exercises and evaluate the course based on the students' surveys.

Citations

• The Mathematics Anxiety Rating Scale: Psychometric data.
• Computational thinking

Related

• Applied Logic in Engineering
• Teaching Logic for Computer Science: Are We Teaching the Wrong Narrative?
• Logic Modelling
• Introducing Computer Science to High School Students through Logic Programming
• Logic Programming for an Introductory Computer Science Course for High School Students