Charlie Chiarelli

Hi, my name is Charlie Chiarelli. I'll be your teacher for this course. I will spend as much time as necessary to help you do the best you can. But, for you to succeed you must be willing to work .

I  am a retired High school Computer Science and Mathematics Teacher from Canada. I taught for  35 years,  I have a BMath degree from the University of Waterloo.

I was a frequent speaker at educational conferences (ECOO)  and seminars . Most recently my talks focused on  E-Learning and the future of education (Flipping the Classroom).

I was the school webmaster and served on a number of school board committee , recently advising my school board (Hamilton Wentworth Catholic District School Board)  on its online learning direction. I was also the contest coordinator for the Annual Programming Contest for the past 15 years.

For the last 7 years before I retired I was in the unique position of teaching most of my computer science  classes entirely online using the D2L LMS. Because of low enrollment  and lack of qualified computer science teachers I became the "board" teacher. So my virtual class was made up of students from various schools in the region.

I am not a brilliant software engineer trying to teach programming. I am a high school computer science teacher that has taught teenagers for over 35 years. So I think my perspective and sensibilities are quite different than the typical Udemy instructor. I feel this gives me a greater appreciation for what beginners need to learn and how it should be presented. 

The next big blue-collar job category is already here—and it’s programming. What if we regarded code not as a high-stakes, sexy affair, but the equivalent of skilled work at a manufacturing plant? I believe we should spend less time urging kids to do expensive four-year computer-­science degrees and instead introduce more code at the vocational level in high school and  community colleges. Mid career people can learn coding online at sites like Udemy. I put forth the belief that  we should focus less on the wunderkinds and more on the average individual.

I hope you agree and find my courses rewarding.