Introductory programming: a systematic literature review

As computing becomes a mainstream discipline embedded in the school curriculum and acts as an enabler for an increasing range of academic disciplines in higher education, the literature on introductory programming is growing. Although there have been several reviews that focus on specific aspects of introductory programming, there has been no broad overview of the literature exploring recent trends across the breadth of introductory programming. This paper is the report of an ITiCSE working group that conducted a systematic review in order to gain an overview of the introductory programming literature. Partitioning the literature into papers addressing the student, teaching, the curriculum, and assessment, we explore trends, highlight advances in knowledge over the past 15 years, and indicate possible directions for future research

Improving Collaboration in Ambiguous Settings by Recognizing the Importance of a Common Domain Vocabulary: An Active Learning Exercise

This paper investigates the impact of an active learning exercise designed to help undergraduate IT/IS (Information Technology/Information Systems) and business students recognize the importance of a common domain vocabulary for collaboration in the ambiguous settings which will be endemic in their careers as IT/IS professionals. We provide preliminary results to promote further research. We also investigated and assessed the robustness of our learning exercise with students with high exam performance and with low performance, and with students in the US and China, all showing improved recognition of the importance of a common domain vocabulary for collaboration. We present relevant literature, provide a detailed description of our active learning exercise, discuss our preliminary findings, identify limitations, and suggest future research

The Impact of 1:1 Technology Initiatives on Lesson Planning

Districts across the country are quickly moving toward a 1:1 student to laptop ratio. Where computer labs or carts were once the norm, many districts are now purchasing all students a laptop to start the year. This movement is occurring at a rapid pace, despite a growing body of research that shows that increased technology does not automatically lead to achievement gains. The teacher plays a vital role in student outcomes, with or without technology. In particular, the manner in which teachers plan lessons is significant to classroom outcomes. This is evident in that the Charlotte Danielson Framework for Teaching (2011), adopted by the majority of states as the rubric for teacher evaluations, recognizes planning as one of the four broad categories essential to effective teaching. Given the explosion of interest in educational technology, as well as the recognition that planning is important to good teaching, the primary goal of this research study was to determine the impact that 1:1 technology has on teacher planning. A secondary purpose of the research was to determine the barriers to improving the quantity and quality of technology lessons planned in a 1:1 environment. The theoretical frameworks used in this study are the Substitution Augmentation Modification Replacement (SAMR) model and the Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework. The SAMR model was used as a guide to determine whether technology was used in a way that increased the rigor of a planned lesson (Puentedura, 2014). TPACK was used as a framework to understand barriers to planning technology lessons (Koehler & Mishra, 2005)

Using Data Mining for Predicting Relationships between Online Question Theme and Final Grade

As higher education diversifies its delivery modes, our ability to use the predictive and analytical power of educational data mining (EDM) to understand students\u27 learning experiences is a critical step forward. The adoption of EDM by higher education as an analytical and decision making tool is offering new opportunities to exploit the untapped data generated by various student information systems (SIS) and learning management systems (LMS). This paper describes a hybrid approach which uses EDM and regression analysis to analyse live video streaming (LVS) students\u27 online learning behaviours and their performance in their courses. Students\u27 participation and login frequency, as well as the number of chat messages and questions that they submit to their instructors, were analysed, along with students\u27 final grades. Results of the study show a considerable variability in students\u27 questions and chat messages. Unlike previous studies, this study suggests no correlation between students\u27 number of questions/chat messages/login times and students\u27 success. However, our case study reveals that combining EDM with traditional statistical analysis provides a strong and coherent analytical framework capable of enabling a deeper and richer understanding of students\u27 learning behaviours and experiences

Unravelling the Temporal Process of Learning Design and Student Engagement in Distance Education using Learning Analytics

Designing a curriculum in online and distance education can be challenging because the processes of what, when, and how students study are not always visible to teachers due to the limited opportunities for face-to-face interactions. The aim of this thesis is to explore how teachers design for learning, together with how the learning design impacts upon the students’ actual engagement with the learning materials, with the subsequent effect on their academic performance. One way forward, is to build on the intersection between the most recent work in learning analytics and learning design research. I have therefore argued for and investigated the potential of incorporating the design of learning activities into the analysis of student learning behaviour. On the one hand, the visualisation of learning activities designed by teachers provides the pedagogical context to improve the interpreta-tion of the observed learning behaviour and its effect on academic performance. On the oth-er hand, the analysis of online digital traces of learning activities offers a dynamic account of how students learn in practice in a distance learning environment. As a result, this thesis sheds new light on the implicit process of how learning design influences student engagement in distance education By employing a mixed-method research design, I first examined how teachers design for learning using visualisations and network analysis of 37 modules over 30 weeks at The Open University. In the next step, I conducted an in-depth qualitative investigation with 12 teachers into the underlying factors that influenced their design decisions, as well as the perceived barriers and affordances of adopting approaches from the Open University Learning Design Initiative. The findings revealed common patterns as well as variations in learning design across modules and their disciplines of study. Analysis of the interviews revealed underlying tensions between teachers’ autonomy and the influence of management and institutional policies in the design process and the adoption of learning design tools. After laying out the foundation for understanding the learning design processes, I carried out a large-scale analysis of 37 modules and 45,190 students to examine how learning design influences student engagement, satisfaction, and performance. The findings indicated that learning design explained up to 69% of the variance in student engagement, which was strongly driven by assimilative, assessment, and communication activities. Finally, I conducted a fine-grained analysis exploring the (in)consistencies between learning design and student behaviour and how different engagement patterns impact academic performance. The analysis found misalignments between how teachers designed for learning and how students actually studied. In most weeks, students spent less time studying the assigned materials compared to the number of hours recommended by instructors. High-performing students not only studied ‘harder’ by spending more time, but also ‘smarter’ by engaging in a timely manner. Altogether, this thesis has contributed new scientific insights into the dynamic temporal aspects of how teachers design for learning and the relations between learning design, engagement, and academic performance in distance education. As an implication, the findings reported here demonstrated how learning design could improve the accuracy and interpretability of learning analytics models, and how learning analytics could help teachers identify potential inconsistencies between learning design and student behaviour

The efficacy of an electronic performance support system as a training tool for online faculty

An instructional website was developed as an electronic performance support system (EPSS) to determine whether faculty would use and learn from such a resource. This website summarized pedagogical information about online instruction that users could access 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In Phase I of the study, five college professors with experience teaching online courses evaluated the usability of the website and made suggestions on how it could be improved. Revisions were made to the website to enhance clarity and comprehension in preparation for Phase II of the study. In Phase II, 35 college instructors agreed to use the website to learn about pedagogical information related to teaching online courses. Only two people visited at least 75% of the web pages, limiting the conclusions that could be drawn. Two conclusions, however, seem warranted. First, an EPSS is not the most effective way to deliver non-mandatory faculty education because the primary goal of an EPSS is to enhance performance in a business setting rather than to facilitate learning in the academic setting. Second, any type of faculty development program must be developed from the learner\u27s perspective and include interaction between the participants