The COVID-19 pandemic has forced a significant increase in the utilization of video-based e-learning platforms for programming education. These platforms never considered the essential attributes of student characteristics and learning preferences while designing such a problematic subject having high dropout and failure rates. The traditional…

Despite the growing research interest in the use of large language models for feedback provision, it still remains unknown how students perceive and use AI-generated feedback compared to instructor feedback in authentic settings. To address this gap, this study compared instructor and AI-generated feedback in a Java programming course through an…

This study investigates the effectiveness of Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITS) in supporting students with varying levels of programming experience. Through a mixed-methods research design, the study explores the impact of ITS on student performance, adaptability to different skill levels, and best practices for utilizing ITS in heterogeneous…

Feedback is crucial during programming problem solving, but context often lacks critical and difference. Generative artificial intelligence dialogic feedback (GenAIDF) has the potential to enhance learners' experience through dialogue, but its effectiveness remains sufficiently underexplored in empirical research. This study employed a rigorous…

Many empirical studies have shown that educational games and recent technologies impact education and increase learning effectiveness, students' motivation and engagement. The overall aim of this study is to evaluate the usability of Imikode, a virtual reality (VR) game that was developed to introduce the concepts of object-oriented programming to…

In MOOCs for programming, Automated Testing and Feedback (ATF) systems are frequently integrated, providing learners with immediate feedback on code assignments. The analysis of the large amounts of trace data collected by these systems may provide insights into learners' patterns of utilizing the automated feedback, which is crucial for the…

Background and Context: automated feedback for programming assignments has great potential in promoting just-in-time learning, but there has been little work investigating the design of feedback in this context. Objective: to investigate the impacts of different designs of automated feedback on student learning at a fine-grained level, and how…

Cultivating children's creativity and imagination is fundamental to preparing them for an increasingly complex and uncertain future. Engaging in creative learning enables children to think independently and critically, work cooperatively, and take risks while actively engaged in meaningful projects. While current trends in education, such as maker…

Background and Context: Recursion in binary trees has proven to be a hard topic. There was not much research on enhancing student understanding of this topic. Objective: We present a tutorial to enhance learning through practice of recursive operations in binary trees, as it is typically taught post-CS2. Method: We identified the misconceptions…

This design case describes design decisions and their impacts during three redesigns of an educational game called the "Rocks and Minerals Challenge." This game was developed as a laboratory supplement for the rocks and minerals component of a university-based geology course. The game has evolved through three distinct design phases:…

Many students need assistance in debugging to achieve progress when they learn to write computer programs. Face-to-face interactions with individual students to give feedback on their programs, although definitely effective in facilitating their learning, are becoming difficult to achieve with ever-growing class sizes. This paper proposes a novel…

Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITSs) have shown success in the domain of programming, in part by providing customized hints and feedback to students. However, many popular novice programming environments still lack these intelligent features. This is due in part to their use of open-ended programming assignments, which are difficult to support with…

There have been many successful examples of new methodological approaches developed to help students in computer programming courses. Of these approaches, the peer assessment mechanism could be useful in providing students with opportunities to learn from one another, improve their learning experience and reach efficient learning outcomes. The…

Offering timely feedback on programming while encouraging learners to engage in critical evaluation of programs are the objectives of peer-testing. We report on a peer-testing experiment with students on distant campuses using a Web platform. The experiment shows the potential that peertesting has to help students transition from passive learners…

Competitive game-based learning has been widely discussed in terms of its positive and negative impacts on learners' learning effectiveness and learning behavior. Although different types of games require different kinds of knowledge to accomplish the task via competition, few studies have considered that knowledge types, such as procedural…