National Computer Science Honor Society to conduct artificial intelligence program
June 11, 2021
The National Computer Science Honor Society is organizing an artificial intelligence program for High School students. The program will be led by Vice President Adil Farooq (’21), Lorenzo Kwenda (’21) and Darren Morris (’23), and the first meeting will take place June 11.
Farooq said the club will follow the curriculum of a Harvard programming course. This will entail around an hour of individual work each week as well as group meetings over Zoom to discuss the content.
Farooq said it is easier to learn a new programming language if you already have experience in a different one. He said the program is designed to cater to people who work at different paces.
“For many students, their skill in one language will influence how easy it is for them to learn AI with python,” he said. “Rather than making everyone go at the exact same pace, we’ll just cover this content of the course, and then we’re all going to come together. There’s a community behind it, but it’s self-paced at the same time.”
Moreover, Farooq said he is hopeful that the program will continue over the summer if people are interested. He said it may also continue next year with new leadership.
Overall, Farooq said AI technology is a powerful source in today’s world and that the program is a great opportunity for students to gauge their interest.
“The biggest barrier to getting into something new is not intelligence, but it’s actually emotion,” he said. “It doesn’t actually take much time to know if this is something you want to pursue and know enough about it to make that choice.”