Educators’ Experiences Online: How COVID-19 Encouraged Pedagogical Change in CS Education

The COVID-19 lockdown in the spring of 2020 created a unique pedagogical change situation. Educators had to make significant and rapid changes to their teaching approaches, with the time frame being in the magnitude of hours, not weeks or months. At NTNU, a survey was conducted among the educators shortly after the lockdown to study how the educators experienced the change from campus based face-to-face learning to online learning. A total of 56 educators responded to the survey, with 22 of these affiliated with a Computer Science (CS) department. Nearly all the CS educators reported having a positive change experience during this time. More than half of the CS educators reported having prior online teaching experience, while nearly three quarters reported having sufficient or partially sufficient competence needed for the change. In this survey, CS educators highlighted pedagogical challenges as the main challenge. The findings also highlight the fact that some educators found aspects of online teaching to be better than campus based teaching and that CS educators collaborate and exchange pedagogical experience when facing change. Approximately two thirds of the CS educators reported that they consulted a more experienced person or worked closely with colleagues when making the change from a face-toface mode of delivery to that of an online only mode of delivery. Given the variety of experiences reported and the willingness to collaborate and exchange experience, it can be argued that CS staff and other departments may choose a path of knowledge sharing and communities to support future blended and online teaching opportunities

The Hidden Benefits of the Campus - What the Covid-19 Pandemic Can Teach Us About the Computing Learning Environment

The educational context for students and educators across the world changed when the Covid-19 pandemic forced many educational institutions to shut down all on-campus activities in the spring of 2020. In this paper, we explore how computing students’ behaviors were affected by the transformation to online-based learning during the pandemic and what this can teach us about the learning environment. A mixed-method analysis of a survey sent out to students in the weeks after lockdown investigated the important aspects of the learning environment, both on campus and online. Results show that informal learning spaces are essential to students, yet challenging to transfer effectively to the online environment. Furthermore, the scaffolding for study behavior development provided by the schedule and structure in the oncampus environment was found to be valuable to students, but often difficult to replicate online. In the paper, these findings are described and discussed further, exploring the educators’ short and long-term implications

Let the gamification begin! - A qualitative case study of student experiences in the gamified learning environment Heimdall's Quest

Educators in classrooms all over the world are focused on integrating and utilizing new technologies that can help with the challenge of unmotivated students. At the same time, digital games have the ability to engage children and adults in complex problem solving and creative activities with high motivation for long periods of time. What happens when these worlds collide in a gamified learning environment? The aim of this study was to answer the research question How does gamification affect students' experienced learning environment? More specifically, I wanted to find out more about what characterizes the gamified learning environment created by the Heimdall's Quest system, and to what extent commercial gaming experience can be significant. By conducting an iterative case study consisting of observation and interviews with teachers and students participating in the motivational classroom system Heimdall's Quest, I was able to gain knowledge about student experiences in a gamified learning environment. Constant comparative analysis of these datasets found that there are three levels to a gamified learning environment: the student level, the classroom level and the society level. Furthermore, my research found that on the student level, playfulness and repetition is essential for extrinsic motivation and competitive features to have a positive effect. On the classroom level, the teacher has great importance in the development and implementation of effective gamified learning activities, where students are able to utilize their skills and knowledge from commercial gaming and take responsibility for their own learning. Lastly, the gamified classroom provides a learning environment where the students' gaming experience is valued, which can improve their self-perception and identity. The findings of this study may give valuable insight to other educators in developing and implementing gamification as a learning tool for the future

From Studying to Learning Computer Science: A study of the first-year experience of computer science education at university

Ensuring that computer science students graduate and learn the desired curriculum is important in order to meet future demands. However, educational institutions have limited room for action as the number of students increases, without additional teaching and structural resources. The research presented here aims to combine knowledge about how computer science students' study and the effects of educational design to maximize the pedagogical potential within the room for action at universities today

Understanding the Relation Between Study Behaviors and Educational Design: Research in Computing Education

Important learning happens outside organized lectures and labs; however, much of the interaction between these educational design constructs and how students study is unknown. This thesis aims to understand how knowledge about computing students’ study behavior can help us design first-year undergraduate computing programs. Previous research has looked at individual courses and specific tools, but the holistic perspective across courses and classes is somewhat missing. Furthermore, the inconsistent use of study behavior terminology and lacking tools to describe educational design makes it challenging to compare findings. This PhD research took a closer look at the first year of two computing programs, examining the student experience and the relation to all levels of the educational design - from admission systems to course assignments. Through a mixed-method approach in three phases, this research used questionnaires, interviews, and document analysis to further our understanding of how educational design parameters affect how students study. The results include a mapping of Norwegian computing education programs and a systematic literature review of study behaviors in computing education, producing a framework of educational design elements and a taxonomy of study behaviors. Together, these contribute to an improved understanding of the relationship between study behavior and educational design parameters in computing education and identifying the room for action for educators. Furthermore, a comprehensive investigation of the whole first year found that schedules, assignments, and campus layout facilitates how, when and where students study. A central result was the definition and characterization of the student-driven learning environment, which is based on the individual students’ perspective and describes how they navigate the educational design constructs across courses within a program. Lastly, the findings from this thesis encourage educators, policymakers, and students to consider shifting the focus slightly from the quantity to the quality of learning by better understanding how students study. Re-examining why we do things based on updated research and theories is an important first step. Every parameter and variable should be questioned, looking for the room for action. In addition to increasing the understanding of computing students, this work also contributes to the knowledge about how to understand computing students

The gamified learning environment - pedagogical possibilities and pitfalls

Gamification can be a powerful educational tool, and has shown potential to increase student motivation and engagement. A large majority of today’s children and youths spend hours focused on solving complex problems in the realm of digital games. The possibility of transferring that kind of flow into the educational sphere through gamification is intriguing. This research aimed to elucidate how students experience the gamified learning environment, and especially the possible connection between commercial gaming experience and the effect of using gamification in education. By conducting an iterative case study consisting of observation and interviews with ICT teachers and students participating in the gamified classroom system Heimdall’s Quest, this study found that the gamified learning environment affects the student at three levels: the student, classroom level and society level. The specifics of these results can give valuable insight to other educators in developing and implementing gamification as a pedagogical and didactical tool for future ICT education

First Year Computing Study Behavior: Effects of Educational Design

This full research paper presents a study exploring first year computing students' study behavior and the effects of educational design. Some research has indicated that the relationship between students' study behavior and their academic performance is as strong as the relationship to more common predictors such as past performance and test scores. However, knowledge about students' study behavior, how behavior develops and is influenced by program and course design, and consequently, the effect various design parameters have on learning is limited. This paper presents a model describing computing students' study behavior and how these are affected by the educational design. Through a mixed-method approach, a population of computing students was followed through their first year. Results from in-depth interviews with students throughout their first year found that the educational structure and organization of a study program conditions the students' study behavior. In order to further investigate these tendencies, two surveys (N=215) were conducted within the whole first-year student population at the beginning and end of the year. A significant difference found was in the use of surface and deep strategies at the beginning and end for the first year, indicating that students shift from deep to surface learning during the year. Even if students initially seek a deep content-driven approach to learning, the structure of the education and other organizational factors may be the cause of a more surface and task-focused approach towards the end of the first year. Students' study behavior is constrained by the educational design, which furthermore may lead to different learning outcomes than desired. Researching and developing learning goals, course content, lectures and assignments is one way to improve computing education; however, this research suggests that taking a comprehensive and integrated approach to educational design might also lead to improvements

The effect of mandatory assignments on students learning outcome and performance in introductory programming courses

In a world in high demand of engineering professionals, higher education should be effective and quality conscious. A better understanding of what type of activities that are best suited for improving students' learning could enable further improvements. In this paper, the effect of mandatory assignments on students' learning outcome in introductory programming courses is explored through a quasi-experimental research study. One group of students were exempted from the mandatory weekly assignments and followed up via biweekly sessions. A control group was recruited to follow an assignment regime in parallel. Through pre- and posttests the learning outcome of the two assignment structures was statistically evaluated. The results indicated that the group of students exempt from mandatory assignments achieved the same learning outcome as the control group. Similarly, no difference was found between the two groups on exam performance. Students have individual learning behaviors and learn to program in different ways, and the instructional design should facilitate individual learning trajectories

Characteristics of the Student-Driven Learning Environment in Computing Education: A Case Study on the Interaction between Educational Design and Study Behavior

Important learning happens outside organized lectures and labs, but much of the interaction between these educational design constructs and the study behavior of computing students is unknown. In this study, we follow a group of computing students through their first semester in order to explore these dependencies. Through weekly reports, students tracked their study behaviors in a CS1 course. An exploratory cluster analysis was performed, mapping the students' organization, independent study, planning and priorities, time engagement, and use of different study environments. By comparing these aspects of student behavior to design parameters at both the program and course levels we get a holistic understanding of the student-driven learning environment. The results of this analysis confirm that there are close relationships between the educational design and when, where, and how students study. Three characteristics were identified: the home alone tendency, the executive action factor and the organized activities component. These results were used to outline the room for action, which can support computing educators to identify the adjustable educational design parameters that will most significantly affect the students' study behaviors

Creating Learning Environments Within the Constraints of Higher Education - a Case Study of a First-Year Computing Program

Designing a good learning environment is key to improve the student experience and ensure learning. However, it is becoming increasingly challenging to create such environments due the growing number of students and the push to optimize the use of learning facilities. The increased administration of higher education creates a limited room for educators to innovate and develop effective educational designs. This paper describes a case study of how one group of educators attempted to solve certain challenges within one university's constraints. The problem observed was that the first-year students were exposed to fragmented scheduling and limited access to collaborative spaces, resulting in a reduced sense of belonging and ineffective study behaviors. At the same time, these students were enrolled in large introductory courses from various departments where we did not have the mandate to make any substantial changes. The solution we came up with was a Study Day Initiative where all the first year computing students were invited to participate in a low threshold study day where teaching assistants were prepared to help with any and all assignments. We were able to clear a full day in the students time table and found an appropriate area within the department's lab spaces. The Study Day Initiative has been in place for three years, receiving very good feedback from students who report being satisfied, making friends and having improved study habits. In this paper we will describe the process behind this initiative, how the constraints of a large university were overcome and present results from the surveys of the participating students