Integrating communication skills in data structures and algorithms courses

While the improvement of computer science students´ communication skills has frequently been called for in the literature, employers continue to feel that recent graduates are not equipped with the writing, speaking, and teaming skills essential in the 21st century workplace. One problem with previous approaches is that they often teach communication skills in dedicated courses rather than integrating them into technical classes across the curriculum. In this paper, we report on a multi-institutional faculty team´s efforts to integrate communication skills into mid-level data structures and algorithms courses as part of a larger NSF-funded project to enact integrated reform throughout computer science/software engineering curricula. We present an outline of assignments designed to develop communication skills (writing, speaking, reading, listening, and teaming) intertwined with technical skills, and discuss our preliminary efforts to assess these efforts. Our work reflects a general approach to incorporate communication activities within the computer science curricula and to help students learn and communicate technical content in academic and professional settings.