The purpose of this research is to examine Computational Thinking (CT) skills, Computer Programming Self-Efficacy (CPSE), and Computer Programming Attitude (CPA) of middle school students who took the Information Technologies & Software (IT&S) courses and those who did not, and make various analyses according to the relationships between…

Background and Context: The relationship between novices' first programming language and their future achievement has drawn increasing interest owing to recent efforts to expand K-12 computing education. This article contributes to this topic by analyzing data from a retrospective study of more than 10,000 undergraduates enrolled in introductory…

The role of the specialized high-school computer teacher is challenged by both students' and non-computer teachers' growing expertise in computers and technology in general. It is also challenged by a need to keep pace with a field that is constantly changing. Yet, few studies have investigated the complex variables that may affect computer…

Single computer courses offered at colleges of education are expected to provide preservice teachers with the skills and expertise needed to adopt computer technology in their future classrooms. However, preservice teachers still find difficulty adopting such technology. This research paper investigated relationships among preservice teachers'…

Computer Science (CS) courses comprise both Programming and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) issues; however these two areas have substantial differences, inter alia the attitudes and beliefs of the students regarding the intended learning content. In this research, factors from the Social Cognitive Theory and Unified Theory of…

As collaboration among teams that are distributed in time and space is becoming increasingly important, there is a need to understand the efficacy of tools available to support that collaboration. This study employs a combination of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and the Task-Technology Fit (TTF) model to compare four different technologies…

The dearth of women in technology and ICT-related fields continues to be a topic of interest for both the scientific community and decision-makers. Research on attitudes towards computers proves that women display more negative computer attitudes than men and also make less intense use of technology and computers than their male counterparts. For…

The purpose of this dissertation was to gain new insight into video game playing, exposure, and preferences as well as perceptions toward success with computers between students in computer related disciplines (CRD) and students in non computer related disciplines (NCRD). Perceptions toward success with computers were measured using a slightly…

Previous research has studied gender differences in people's perceptions and behaviors toward information technologies with mixed findings. In addition, the reasons causing these differences have been discussed but rarely empirically tested in the literature. In this study, we investigated the mechanisms through which gender affects the…

Low retention rates in third-level computing courses, despite continuing research into new and improved computer teaching methods, present a worrying concern. For some computing students learning programming is intimidating, giving rise to lack of confidence and anxiety. The noncognitive domain of anxiety with regard to learning computer…

This exploratory study took place in the context of middle school information science in Greece, to examine possible relations between boys' and girls': value and efficacy beliefs about computers and information science; perceived parental support; perceived teacher expectations; and perceptions of the nature of information science instruction.…

Describes a study that examined various characteristics of undergraduate students enrolled in a computer skills course. Variables considered include gender, college major, high school computer courses, other prior computer experience, computer self-efficacy, computer attitude, computer anxiety, and cognitive style. (Author/LRW)

This study examined the effect of two computer literacy courses (one was offered online, and the other was offered through traditional methods) at the Middle East Technical University (Turkey). The two courses were compared in terms of their effectiveness on computer attitudes of student-teachers. The study also explored the other factors that…