This study explores student perceptions of learning to code by evaluating AI-generated Python code. In an experimental exercise given to students in an introductory Python course at a business university, students wrote their own solutions to a Python program and then compared their solutions with AI-generated code. They evaluated both solutions…

The principles of programming language design for learning and teaching have been described and discussed for several decades. Most influential was the work of Niklaus Wirth, describing principles such as simplicity, modularity, orthogonality, and readability. So why is this still an area of fundamental disagreement among educators? Why can…

Background: Conventional reflective learning methodologies in programming education often lack structured guidance and individualised feedback, limiting their pedagogical effectiveness. Whilst computational thinking (CT) offers a systematic problem-solving framework with decomposition, pattern recognition, abstraction, and algorithm design, its…

Students face several difficulties in introductory programming courses (CS1), often leading to high dropout rates, student demotivation, and lack of interest. The literature has indicated that the adequate use of gamification might improve learning in several domains, including CS1. However, the understanding of which (and how) factors influence…

Machine learning methods can be used to reduce the manual workload in exam grading, making it possible for teachers to spend more time on other tasks. However, when it comes to grading exams, fully eliminating manual work is not yet possible even with very accurate automated grading, as any grading mistakes could have significant consequences for…

Computer science is a fast-growing field in today's digitized age, and working in this industry often requires creativity and innovative thought. An issue within computer science education, however, is that large introductory programming courses often involve little opportunity for creative thinking within coursework. The undergraduate…

Students want to learn computer science due to its usefulness for future careers, however they often meet challenges in introductory courses. In the increasingly digital world, it is important to understand some important psychological consequences of such challenges: perceived costs of pursuing computer science. This study thus investigated…

In this paper the "Memory Transfer Language" program visualization (MTL PV) technique is combined with "constructivism" ("conceptual contraposition and colloquy") and "reversibility" to evolve a new approach for instructional design for teaching and learning introductory programming. A sample of 1,364…

The second CSEDM data challenge aimed at finding innovative methods to use students' programming traces to model their learning. The main challenge of this task is how to decide which past problems are relevant for predicting performance on a future problem. This paper proposes a set of weighting schemes to address this challenge. Specifically,…

Background and Context: Computer Science has traditionally had poor student retention, especially among women. Prior work has found that student attitudes are a key factor to retention, especially with "weedout" courses such as Calculus. Objective: To determine how student attitudes towards CS 1 and Calculus change over active-learning…

Teaching programming is a topic that has generated a high level of interest among researchers in recent decades. In particular, multiple approaches to teaching visual programming have been explored, from the use of tools such as Scratch, robots, unplugged programming, or activities for the development of computational thinking. Despite the wide…

When incorporating programming into a statistics course, there are many pedagogical considerations. In R, one consideration is the particular R syntax used. This article reports on a head-to-head comparison of a pair of introductory statistics labs, one conducted in the formula syntax, the other in tidyverse. Pre- and post-surveys show minimal…

Interdisciplinarity has been touted as a means to recruit more racially and gender-diverse students to computing. In this explanatory sequential mixed-methods study, we investigated demographic characteristics among a sample of undergraduate students pursuing interdisciplinary computing major and minor combinations at 15 institutions in the United…

We propose a framework for identifying, organizing, and communicating learning objectives that involve program semantics. In this framework, detailed learning objectives are written down as rules of program behavior (RPBs). RPBs are teacher-facing statements that describe what needs to be learned about the behavior of a specific sort of programs.…

A replication study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of an instructional treatment based on self-efficacy theory when used with novice Arduino microcontroller users. Students (n = 32) in an introductory university agricultural systems technology course participated in a lesson on Arduino microcontrollers, circuit breadboarding, and…