American Computer Science League Programming Competition

If you didn’t see this in the recent CSTA email blast read below about the ACSL Programming Competition:

ACSL has offered a unique programming competition for 36 years. Here are some excellent reasons to participate this year:

• ACSL contests are conducted at your local school or institution throughout the year.
• All of your students can compete and be successful, not just a very few.
• All necessary preparation materials are supplies as soon as you register.
• The contest allows for various experience levels - Junior, Intermediate, and Senior.
• The Classroom Division provides a non-programming version of the contest.
• Programs can be written in any language(s) that the students know how to use.
• ACSL can extend the actual curriculum in computer science or be used as an extracurricular activity.
• New, creative contest questions and programming problems are used every year.
• Previous years' contest questions are able to be purchased for extra practice.
• Important Computer Science topics such as Boolean Algebra, Graph Theory, Computer Number Systems, and Data Structures are introduced.
• Prizes are awarded on a regional basis to top scoring students and teams during the year.
• Fast e-mail response is provided for all questions and concerns.
• Sample student-written programs in several languages are provided after each contest.
• The level of programming increases in difficulty as the year progresses starting with only IF-THEN statements for the first contest.
• ACSL has sponsored regional contests continuously since 1978 and is now international.
• There is an annual All-Star Contest that is hosted at a different location every year and this year it is in Orlando, FL!
• ACSL is on the Approved Activities List of the National Association of Secondary School Principals.
• ACSL is an institutional member of CSTA.
• All of the ACSL team members have been high school Computer Science teachers.

If you are interested in participating in the ACSL contests, please visit our web site www.acsl.org, read the 'How the ACSL Works' link and view the 'Sample Questions' link. All questions about ACSL can be sent to Jerry Tebrow @ jerry@acsl.org.

As in the past, ACSL will include a free contest CD in the registration packet that is sent to all new teams if the advisor is a CSTA member.