Programming in The Context of Civil Engineering Education

Abstract The potential of computing in education can be easily visualized by comparing manual calculations to using spreadsheets. The various benefits range from easing repetitive tasks to visualizing data. It also grants the ability to explore without being hindered by heavy computational burdens. Programming is one computing tool that is mostly neglected in civil engineering education, where to the modern civil engineer computing may be viewed as only using commercially available software. But how can programming be used in a civil engineering class? This paper aims to answer this question by illustrating three different examples of programs written using python programming language to create impactful visualizations and engaging projects. Programming can be used in-class by educators to create visualizations and interactive sessions, or by students to train their algorithmic-thinking problem-solving skills. Though there are many barriers that obstruct implementing computing into civil engineering classes, they can be mitigated by using python.