NetsBlox: Digital Learning Technology for Computer Science Education

Program Overview


NetsbloxType: Vanderbilt Initiative Award (ViA)

Skills in computer programming are increasingly becoming an essential tool for solving global problems. Traditional approaches to computer programming are being enhanced by the development of visual programming languages, which are more easily taught to interested students. Although effective, such languages have not been developed for distributed programming over the internet. Faculty in Computer Science and Peabody College are developing NetsBlox, a visual programming platform with an intuitive user interface and a cloud-based network that will be used to teach key concepts of distributed computation to high school students. The goal is to create an environment actively used by students at Vanderbilt and by hundreds of thousands of students worldwide, providing Vanderbilt a chance to become the first university to teach distributed computing in a curriculum that would attract creative students not afraid to think outside the box.

Faculty Participants

Lead Faculty in bold

School of Engineering


  • Akos Ledeczi, Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science

College of Arts & Science

  • Chris Vanags, Associate Director, Center for Science Outreach

Peabody College

  • Pratim Sengupta

Related Links