Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Top Posts from 2015

I decided it was time to take a look at my most read posts from the last year. This is an interesting exercise for several reasons. One is the inconsistency of statistics. I have two sources (Google Analytics and Blogger’s native statistics) there is not as much similarity as you would expect. Certainly not as much as I’d like. Another reason is that most of the most  widely read posts were not posted originally in 2015.  Search engine traffic brings a majority of my readers. But for good or for ill, accurate or not, here is what appear to be the most read posts over the last year.
Programming With Blocks  First posted three years ago but updated regularly since. A lot vof people seem interested in this topic.
Recursion – Love it or hate it? Posted this year back in February.  I guess I am not the only one who struggles with this topic.
Interview Questions for Computer Science Teachers A surprise. I wrote this list in March, with input from many people, after I saw that people were searching for related questions.
How NOT To Tell If Someone Is Cut Out For Computer Science This was a reaction to something I read online. In it I try to address some stereotypes about who is and is not cut out for computer science.
Lecture, Demo, Project From April of 2013, this post talks about my teaching style. I’ve no idea why search engines bring so many people to it.
Resources For Teaching Binary Numbers Also from April 2013 though I have updated it several times. And always looking for new resources if you know of any. Lots more people seem to be teaching this topic lately. It’s one of my favorites.
Programming Languages for Middle School From December 2013 (I must have been on a roll in 2013) this is another topic that has had a lot of interest this year. I’d love for some current middle school CS teachers to make suggestions for updates.
Robots For Teaching Programming Another list post that is updated as I found new resources. Good stuff for people who would rather move atoms than pixels.
Computer (and Math) Humor From May 2013. The link here is actually to a new version I posted yesterday that has a lot more images.
Your GPA Doesn’t Mean Anything Useful Really some thoughts on grades and what they are and are not good for.
The first three on this list have the really large numbers along with the base address (http://blog.acthompson.net ) I expect them to continue to attract search engine traffic. I’ll try to create some new posts that add value during the coming year though. Thanks for reading.

2 comments:

  1. I should do a screen capture. You admitted to using two Google tools in the same sentence!

    It was fun to see your listing of posts. I think that I read them all at the time. You definitely are a strong voice for Computer Science education and we're fortunate that you take the time to share your learning.

    All the best to the Thompsons for 2016.

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  2. Sometimes you use what you have to use Doug. I don't understand why the two tools from Google give such different results. I've toyed with the idea of researching other ways of getting data about traffic but there are always things more pressing.

    My very best wishes for the Peterson family in 2016.

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