Misconceptions and the Notional Machine in Very Young Programming Learners

This study looks at very young learners make mistakes and possibly form misunderstanding when learning to programming. A variety of national efforts are extending programming education to younger learners who are materials many adults struggle to learn. For decades literature has captured common misconceptions in using programming constructs (e.g. conditionals, loops, and recursion) in older learners, but early learners may wait years before they tackle these complex concepts. Many model misconceptions as a missing or inaccurate notional machine. The notional machine is an individual’s mental model, representing how a programming language executes on a real device. The notional machine aligns with traditional learning models from several educational theorists, particularly Bruner’s three stages of representations and Kahneman’s neuroscience-based modeling of the mind. To better understand the early thought process of and learning theory for teaching novices, this study looks at videos of early elementary students working to create basic navigational programs for simple robots. We observed students in K-2 and categorized the mistakes made and strategies used to achieve their goals. Our findings align with prior misconception literature in very young learners around the ‘problem’ being the source of more misconceptions than the language. We also find promising cases which support learning theory around the notional machine, Bruner’s representations and Kahneman’s two mind model. Using this theory suggests possible approaches to consider in teaching young learners to program

Systematic Literature Review of the Use of Rich Media in STEM and Related Education

The use of video in pedagogy is well established in the modern classroom with researched understanding of its benefits. Prior literature reviews provide a foundation for the impacts within a wide scope of environments and subjects. These reviews primarily have looked at students and faculty attitudes, learning outcomes, and the impact on attendance. The impact has been spread over general subject matter with little focus on the often challenging topics of STEM education. Many topics in STEM education are highly procedural, such as mathematical proofs or writing code or conducting experiments. Understanding the costs and benefits of using video to capture these types of topics would be valuable in maximizing the benefits or avoiding concerns within STEM topics. This systematic literature review looks at the use of lecture capture and rich media within STEM and related education by looking at 30 articles from educational and STEM focused databases. Articles were selected which include findings on student and faculty attitudes, attendance, and learning outcomes as well as the impact of video and its best practices found through research. The findings within the STEM literature largely align with prior literature reviews in other subjects: video is popular among students and helps in their learning outcomes. Most research in this area focuses on video captured of the same lecture provided live in the classroom. This is shown to be effective, but some of the literature suggests further improvements to maximizing the value of both the technical merit of video as well as its pedagogical content. The goal is to determine the state of the use of video via lecture capture and prerecording in STEM education, its impact on students, and to gather recommendations and best practices from the literature

A Learning Trajectory for Developing Computational Thinking and Programming

A learning trajectory for developing computational thinking and programming This research study identifies the relationship between students’ prior experiences with programming and their development of computational thinking and programming during their first year engineering experience. Many first year programs teach students basic programming constructs using languages like MATLAB or LABView. The reason for this is because the disciplinary schools expect students to transform the constitutive properties that model a system’s behavior into a computer model they can use to analyze a system’s performance. Some undergraduate engineering students are entering college with strong computational backgrounds, while others are not. Peer learning has been used to accommodate the variance is skills between students; however, more needs to be known about the opportunities and issues with helping students develop these skills. This study is the first in a series to better identify students’ transition into developing and reasoning with analytical tools. The initial conjecture is that well balanced teams of novice and expert programmers can have a positive effect on the novice programmer’s development. Further the learning progression across two programming languages is critical to developing a student’s ability to generalize across various computational tools. Self-report background survey, students’ performance on academic assessments and an end of semester exit survey are being analyzed to identify a pattern in the development of novice programmers’ ability to design algorithms and implement them in code. This paper will be of interest to instructors with the objective of developing computational thinking and programming in classrooms with a large variance in students’ backgrounds with programming

An Operationalized Model for Defining Computational Thinking

The Computational Thinking (CT) conceptual framework is entering its second decade of research yet still lacks a cohesive definition by which the field can coalesce. The lack of clear definition makes assessment tool challenging to formulate, pedagogical efforts difficult to compare, and research difficult to synthesize. This paper looks to operationalize differing definitions of CT enhancing the ability to teach then assess the presence of CT. Expanding upon CT definitions, industry practices and processes, and educational theory, we link existing concepts and propose a new element to model an active definition of CT as a theoretical framework to guide future research. Our model updates existing CT definition by formally including Modeling, introducing Socio-Technical processes, separating Information Gathering from Data Collection and adding emphasis to Testing as a vital CT concept. We feel these elements and interconnections make CT is easier to describe and measure

Understanding the impact of strategic team formation in early programming education

This evidence based research looks at the impact of a team-based instruction on learning to program in a first year engineering course designed under the Bauhaus studio model. Each team is formulated with a “more knowledgeable other” [1], or for this paper the “ringer” based on selfreported prior learning. The ringer is intended to support the team through early programming challenges. In addition to the professor and teaching assistants, having a peer mentor can yield higher satisfaction and confidence in learners [2]. Our analysis evaluates learning outcomes as student progress through the term, comparing performance based on the performance and prior knowledge reported by the ringer. The major research questions investigate the role of the ringer in the success of the team, as well looking to see if teams that include a low performing student have any common characteristics. Findings include data from 2013, 2014, and 2015 with trends apparent in each of the years across major topics. This study shows that the formulation of teams around a carefully selected more knowledgeable other can improve the learning of the entire team. In general, ringer score correlates to an increase in the rest of the team’s average. The ringer score only supports learning to a certain degree where if the gap in score is too larger compared to the rest of the team, lower performing members can suffer. In general the formation of teams using prior programming experience seems to do no harm and even possibly improve learning outcomes, and the data may also suggest additional improvements on the use of teams

Data Driven Course Improvements: Using Artifact Analysis to Conquer ABET Criterion 4

This evidence based practice describes a process to evaluate a course within the spirit of ABET Criteria 4, continuous improvement. Faculty and staff are often asked to collaborate on the design and instruction of core engineering courses. Over time, these courses may evolve to accommodate new subject matter, pedagogical approaches, political and personal preferences, or other criteria as dictated by a dynamic group of stakeholders. Many changes originate from a clearly defined need or mandate, while others may sneak in without a full analysis of the course. Repeated and often subtle changes compound to have a significant impact on the course, creating a narrative reflecting the intents of the faculty and the concerns of the institution as course goals and methods are updated in each subsequent semester. This paper describes a process to employ engineering education research methods to describe the nature, development, implications, and motivation behind of course changes. We define a six step process focused on the use of artifact analysis to provide instructional teams with concrete historical data, allowing them to better understand the structure of their course and how it has changed over time. A case study examining a large-format, First Year Engineering course is included at a part of this paper, providing context and serving to describe the process in action. The case study includes methodological choices, analysis, and findings as a guide to practitioners seeking to follow or further develop our process for gathering data. The data produced can be used to inform future changes to the course design to ensure alignment of the course objectives, assessment, and pedagogy, while at the same time systematically meeting the requirements of ABET Criteria 4

A Protocol for NMR Analysis of the Enantiomeric Excess of Chiral Diols Using an Achiral Diboronic Acid Template

A practically simple derivatization protocol for determining the enantiopurity of chiral diols by ¹H NMR spectroscopic analysis is described. Diols were treated with 0.5 equiv of 1,3-phenyldiboronic acid to afford mixtures of diastereomeric boronate esters whose homochiral/heterochiral ratios are an accurate reflection of the diol’s enantiopurity

A structured framework for improving outbreak investigation audits

Outbreak investigation is a core function of public health agencies. Suboptimal outbreak investigation endangers both public health and agency reputations. While audits of clinical medical and nursing practice are conducted as part of continuous quality improvement, public health agencies rarely make systematic use of structured audits to ensure best practice for outbreak responses, and there is limited guidance or policy to guide outbreak audit. A framework for prioritising which outbreak investigations to audit, an approach for conducting a successful audit, and a template for audit trigger questions was developed and trialled in four foodborne outbreaks and a respiratory disease outbreak in Australia. The following issues were identified across several structured audits: the need for clear definitions of roles and responsibilities both within and between agencies, improved communication between agencies and with external stakeholders involved in outbreaks, and the need for development of performance standards in outbreak investigations - particularly in relation to timeliness of response. Participants considered the audit process and methodology to be clear, useful, and non-threatening. Most audits can be conducted within two to three hours, however, some participants felt this limited the scope of the audit. The framework was acceptable to participants, provided an opportunity for clarifying perceptions and enhancing partnership approaches, and provided useful recommendations for approaching future outbreaks. Future challenges include incorporating feedback from broader stakeholder groups, for example those of affected cases, institutions and businesses; assessing the quality of a specific audit; developing training for both participants and facilitators; and building a central capacity to support jurisdictions embarking on an audit. The incorporation of measurable performance criteria or sharing of benchmark performance criteria will assist in the standardisation of outbreak investigation audit and further quality improvement

Competing biosecurity and risk rationalities in the Chittagong poultry commodity chain, Bangladesh

This paper anthropologically explores how key actors in the Chittagong live bird trading network perceive biosecurity and risk in relation to avian influenza between production sites, market maker scenes and outlets. They pay attention to the past and the present, rather than the future, downplaying the need for strict risk management, as outbreaks have not been reported frequently for a number of years. This is analysed as ‘temporalities of risk perception regarding biosecurity’, through Black Swan theory, the idea that unexpected events with major effects are often inappropriately rationalized (Taleb in The Black Swan. The impact of the highly improbable, Random House, New York, 2007). This incorporates a sociocultural perspective on risk, emphasizing the contexts in which risk is understood, lived, embodied and experienced. Their risk calculation is explained in terms of social consent, practical intelligibility and convergence of constraints and motivation. The pragmatic and practical orientation towards risk stands in contrast to how risk is calculated in the avian influenza preparedness paradigm. It is argued that disease risk on the ground has become a normalized part of everyday business, as implied in Black Swan theory. Risk which is calculated retrospectively is unlikely to encourage investment in biosecurity and, thereby, points to the danger of unpredictable outlier events

PANTHER: AZD8931, inhibitor of EGFR, ERBB2 and ERBB3 signalling, combined with FOLFIRI: a Phase I/II study to determine the importance of schedule and activity in colorectal cancer

BACKGROUND: Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is a therapeutic target to which HER2/HER3 activation may contribute resistance. This Phase I/II study examined the toxicity and efficacy of high-dose pulsed AZD8931, an EGFR/HER2/HER3 inhibitor, combined with chemotherapy, in metastatic colorectal cancer (CRC). METHODS: Treatment-naive patients received 4-day pulses of AZD8931 with irinotecan/5-FU (FOLFIRI) in a Phase I/II single-arm trial. Primary endpoint for Phase I was dose limiting toxicity (DLT); for Phase II best overall response. Samples were analysed for pharmacokinetics, EGFR dimers in circulating exosomes and Comet assay quantitating DNA damage. RESULTS: Eighteen patients received FOLFIRI and AZD8931. At 160 mg bd, 1 patient experienced G3 DLT; 160 mg bd was used for cohort expansion. No grade 5 adverse events (AE) reported. Seven (39%) and 1 (6%) patients experienced grade 3 and grade 4 AEs, respectively. Of 12 patients receiving 160 mg bd, best overall response rate was 25%, median PFS and OS were 8.7 and 21.2 months, respectively. A reduction in circulating HER2/3 dimer in the two responding patients after 12 weeks treatment was observed. CONCLUSIONS: The combination of pulsed high-dose AZD8931 with FOLFIRI has acceptable toxicity. Further studies of TKI sequencing may establish a role for pulsed use of such agents rather than continuous exposure. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ClinicalTrials.gov number: NCT01862003