Workshop Request

What is the title of your workshop

Problem Solving Workshop

What are the key topics that will be covered in the workshop?

• Clarify what we mean by "problem solving"
• Setting expectations that we all struggle with problem solving at first (coursework, CodeWars, Codility, etc.)
• How do we get better at problem solving
• Common problem solving techniques and how they apply to a real example

What knowledge does the trainee need before starting?

Due to the examples we might use in the workshop, some initial JavaScript knowledge would be beneficial. Specifically, I would suggest trainees are already familiar with the concepts covered in the JS1 module of the syllabus (variables, conditionals, loops, arrays).

What are the topics that will not be covered in the workshop?

The details of any specific coding constructs or coding environment should probably not be covered in the workshop. I would go as far as suggesting we don't use laptops in the workshop either. The idea is to focus on the problem solving aspects of software development, before writing any code in an IDE.

Any other notes?

More potential content (including a breakdown of some common problem solving techniques) in the attached slides:
Problem Solving.pdf

First exercise used to introduce some common problem solving techniques to the group as a whole:

Write a function to return the longest word in a given array.

Second exercise, which can be done in smaller groups of trainees with whiteboards (or paper and pencil, if no whiteboards are available).

Imagine you are a teacher and your students have taken a test. The tests are marked with one of the following grades: A+, A, B, C, 
D, or F.
- You want to get the average score of the class as a number. For this, you can assume A+ is worth 100, A is 90, B is 80, C is 70, D is 60 and F is 50.
- Write a function which,
    - given an array of grades (which are either A+, A, B, C, D, or F)
    - returns the average score of the class as a numbe

Completion

When completed the lesson plan, slides and exercises should be added to the Workshop section of the Syllabus