This proposal develops a new approach of teaching introductory Artificial Intelligence (AI) concepts through a laboratory experimentation approach. Each topic includes several components that range from "the concept in the real world" through detailed code implementation. The laboratory setting supports communication skills as well as software engineering and process understanding, and the laboratories cover a wide range of AI applications. The laboratory approach supports students who learn better in a social setting, including women students, or who learn better by reading and developing mental models.
The project has several components, including developing laboratory materials to be used in a sequence of lab exercises as the student works through the laboratory (including the basic concept, some applications of the concept, sample processing concepts, design description, code hints, test suites, experiments, full source code, and a complexity analysis). It extends beyond that available through current repositories of AI materials. The project includes three workshops, which are primarily assessment activities where participants review course materials.
The project develops a repository linked to an appropriate element of the NSDL and appropriate development of metadata is included. Along with the repository, a mix of papers, conference presentations, and conference workshops make this available to the broader community.
