An experienced programmer and avid video game fan, Mr. Darren Cameron joined the Bishop’s community this year as a new computer science teacher. His passion for gaming isn’t separate from his profession. He incorporates his love for gaming into his teaching style. For example, in his middle school computer science class, eighth graders learned to code within the popular game of Minecraft. Prior to teaching at Bishop’s, Mr. Cameron taught at the La Jolla Country Day School and was a software programmer and developer in a variety of industries.
Q: What interests you the most about computer science?
A: I think I’ve always liked puzzles and problems. I just like investigating things. I always like solving things and building things, all kinds of things, so computer science was a great mixture of that for me [Computer science] it’s always changing. It’s such an interesting field, a really cool field to be involved in.
Q: What made you switch from the software development field to teaching computer science?
A: “I love computer science, so being able to share that with students is just super exciting…I love doing software development, but sometimes you couldn’t find projects that had as much meaning. I think education is such a meaningful field to be involved in. I think it’s mixing doing something positive, and doing something important with doing something I’m interested in.”
Q: What was the first thing you built that sparked the “computer science is for me” in you?
A: Early on, I was really interested in computer gaming and so I think for me I was really interested in “how are games made,” and “how do they work,” then I got interested in the coding side of it. And I think that was what probably really what got my initial interest was gaming. I’m a big gamer, so understanding how they work may be one of the first things that got me interested.
Q: You mentioned that you were a huge gamer, what would you say is your favorite video game?
A: Well, right now, I can tell you the ones I’ve been playing. Guild Wars 2, which is an MMO [Massively Multiplayer Online Game], Minecraft, which everybody knows, and then Rocket League.
Q: Has your love for gaming informed the way you teach?
A: Hm…That’s a good question. I think I find programming really fun. I mean it’s part of the reason I do it, so I do, some people call it, ‘gamification,’ [where we] try to incorporate game logic and things from games that students might find interesting, so yeah I would say I utilize it a little bit…And then I also do [competitive] robotics, which is a game in [and of] itself.
Q: Are there any new projects or ideas you would like to bring to Bishop’s?
A: “What I’d like to do with one of my advanced classes is…to find some community, some organization, some business that could probably use some help developing something…I’m always looking for some things that connect to the real-world that might be interesting to students.”
Q: What do you hope to bring to Bishop’s?
A: Obviously computer science is what I’m passionate about, so hopefully instilling in some kids some interest. Even if they’re not going to be engineering or CS [computer science] majors, just seeing that it can be really fun and creative. I think people have a lot of preconception on what computer science is, but it can be such a wide-open field. I mean you’ve got: robotics, cyber security, traditional software development, game development, AI and machine learning. I think just getting students excited about it and I think that the thing about computer science is that it’s not just programmers. I think it teaches you…algorithmic thinking, how to approach problems and how to solve problems, so I think that’s a useful tool regardless of what your major or field of studies are.
Q: What character, fictional or real, would you say you model after?
A: I’ve always liked, from Lord of the Rings, Aragorn. I think because he was humble, loyal, courageous, I mean, he’s just a wonderful character…I do think loyalty, honesty, and courageousness is important.
Q: Is there anything else you would like to say or feel that people should know about you?
A: I would add that, while I think we’ve done a good job, I would like to see more women in our field. It’s an area we’re still lacking in the software development and software engineering fields. I think Bishop’s does a good job, but I’d like to see more!
Mr. Cameron’s enthusiasm for his craft exudes all the way from his office in Wheeler Bailey. Welcome to Bishop’s, Mr. Cameron!
