Merging an artistic mind with technology focus
What happens when computer science is approached through creativity and art through mathematics? For Alexander Hernandez Pineda, a fourth-year Global Business and Digital Arts (GBDA) student, these disciplines aren't mutually exclusive, but complementary ways of understanding and solving problems.
Through his work term supporting students in computer science, Alexander discovered how his artistic mindset could help students understand programming concepts. Now, he's applying that same interdisciplinary thinking to his aspirations in the video game industry, where creativity and technical expertise come together.
Alexander Hernandez Pineda
Alexander's co-op journey
CS 105 Instructional Support Assistant, University of Waterloo
Working with the Instructional Support Group, Alexander supported CS 105, a computer science course he had previously taken as a first-year GBDA student. His responsibilities included grading weekly programming assignments, testing course materials for technical errors, assisting students during office hours and collaborating with other instructional support staff.
Q&A with Alexander
How would you describe the way you approach art, mathematics and computer science?
"I look at art in a very math way, and I look at math and computer science in an artist way."
"For art, I’m very heavy on structure and angles so that everything remains consistent. Then with programming, I get really creative and go, ‘Okay we have an end point. How, with my very limited knowledge, can I string all these individual points into a line so I can get to my result without just going into a rabbit hole and finding a tutorial.’"
Alexander pointing at the Computer Science Consulting Centre, where he worked during his co-op
How did your artistic background influence the way you taught computer science?
"I was able to see all of the students’ different perspectives and then explain the concept in a way they understood. I often approached it as, ‘Here's the technical side, but also, since you're an art student, you can also imagine it in this way.’"
"The role required being able to communicate with people at different skill levels and being able to tackle problems using different approaches. For example, with one student, they
might not be able to understand the more design way of thinking about programming, but they might be really good at the math side. So explaining it in a more technical math approach would be better suited for them."
What was the most memorable part of your co-op experience?
"The most memorable part about the entire experience was seeing all of the students’ final projects because they got free reign for what they wanted their projects to be."
"Seeing all the different approaches that the students had and also seeing them cram into office hours to say, ‘hey it's broken, I genuinely don't know what's going on, help’ and being the one to help them was really cool and rewarding."
"One thing that I always really love is just talking about people's ideas and their approaches to dealing with a problem. That's actually the same reason why I love math so much."
How did your co-op help you grow professionally?
“As a kid I always knew I wanted to do something in the game design area. So when it came to me choosing universities and even choosing courses in high school, I would always try and find different ways to combine art and design. With this co-op, I had the unique opportunity to combine everything that I wanted in one: teaching, art, design and also math."
"I was able to develop the technical skills, but I also learned a lot of soft skills. Being able to communicate with people at different skill levels was a big one for me."
How do you apply your creative and technical thinking to your own game design projects?
"I'm currently working on a digital card game with my friend. We've been working on it for a few years on and off with school. Even when I'm not on my computer, I’ll just take my notebook out, flip to a new page and am constantly scratching out different ideas."
What advice would you give students who are intimidated by programming?
"Honestly, the first step is just to ignore your computer and don't even touch a device at this point. Write the most simple idea that you have on paper and then be so annoying by breaking it up into the smallest pieces that you can until you're just working with individual words."
"Don't even think about the code, just think in simple words ‘what will the player do in one step and then what do I need in order to get there?’"
What's next for you?
"Because my main goal is to get into the video game industry, either as a technical artist or as an actual game designer and programmer, my direction is going to be continuing in an art and design field.”
“I’ve gotten matched for another co-op and its thankfully another teaching role with e-learning developers so in a similar way I’m behind the scenes in courses for a bunch of different disciplines."