There are many different pathways to take at Canyon High School; however, Computer Science is one of the best pathways provided. The Computer Science pathway has 3 courses: AP Comp Science Principles, AP Comp Science A CTE, and CTE H App Development.
Each course teaches portions of Computer Science and has students doing different things, but they all follow the same premise of coding and computers. Computer Science Principles focuses more on how a computer’s brain works, and all of the coding is done with Scratch, a basic coding engine that uses blocks instead of having you write the code.
The next course, Computer Science, focuses mostly on learning how to code and use the coding language Java. Most of the code used to be done on Replit, a Java coding engine, but it is shutting down, so the class switched to Eclipse.
These two classes are AP classes and will have AP exams and multiple tests throughout the year to train you for the real AP exam.
App Development is the last class you can take. This course is about coding games and apps on the Unity Engine where many popular games and apps are made. The coding is on C# (C Sharp), and both 2D and 3D games are made in this course.
App Development does not have actual tests; however, you are graded on completing projects promptly. If you are not on top of your work, it is easy for it to pile up, and you will lose time to work on newer projects.
Taking Computer Science is a great place to learn the basics of coding and having Underwood as your teacher is another benefit as he is an amazing teacher. Current student Reveron Cardona said, “It’s a good place to start if you want to be a Computer Science major, and Mr. Underwood’s the G.O.A.T.”
Another student, Gabriel Villegas, said, “I think it’s important to learn about coding and real-world situations.”
This course teaches you many things about coding and also about things that you will engage with in your daily life. Even if you do not plan to become a Computer Science major, it is still good to take its principles, as it teaches you many important things about computers.
