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.…

Promoting creativity is considered an important goal of education, but creativity is notoriously hard to measure. In this article, we make the journey from defining a formal measure of creativity, that is, efficiently computable to applying the measure in a practical domain. The measure is general and relies on core theoretical concepts in…

Collaborative learning is a complex process during which two or more learners exchange opinions, construct shared knowledge, and solve problems together. While engaging in this interactive process, learners' satisfaction toward their partners plays a crucial role in defining the success of the collaboration. If intelligent systems could predict…

At present, teaching programming to future teachers is superficial or is excluded from computer science curricular. Only programming fundamentals are taught during computer studies, and skills acquired during the training are not applied in practice. The aims of this article are (1) to develop a programming course for teacher training disciplines…

This research is focused on how to support students' acquisition of program construction skills through worked examples. Although examples have been consistently proven to be valuable for student's learning, the learning technology for computer science education lacks program construction examples with interactive elements that could engage…

Informed by the person-object theory of interest, this study deployed a mixed-method concurrent triangulation design and investigated the impact of major/specialization, gender, and module design on preservice teachers' interest in teaching computational thinking. The study was conducted in a flipped computational thinking module hosted in three…

Background: Coding has become an integral part of STEM education. However, novice learners face difficulties in processing codes within embedded structures (also termed nested structures). This study aimed to investigate the cognitive mechanism underlying the processing of embedded coding structures based on hierarchical complexity theory, which…

The use of the Capture the Flag (CTF)-style competitions has grown popular in a variety of environments as a method to improve or reinforce cybersecurity techniques. However, while these competitions have shown promise in student engagement, enjoyment, and the teaching of essential workforce cybersecurity concepts, many of these CTF challenges…

Pair programming (PP), as a mode of collaborative problem solving (CPS) in computer programming education, asks two students work in a pair to co-construct knowledge and solve problems. Considering the complex multimodality of pair programming caused by students' discourses, behaviors, and socio-emotions, it is of critical importance to examine…

Computer programming is a difficult course for many students. Prior works advocated for group learning pedagogies in pursuit of higher-level reasoning and conceptual understanding. However, the methodological gaps in existing implementations warrant further research. This study conducted a three-armed cluster-randomized controlled trial to…

In order to meet the communication needs of individuals who use Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) devices, communication partners are often responsible for the programming of the AAC devices. However, the prolonged learning time and operational demands of AAC devices are often barriers to an efficient use of time during a therapy…

The primary goals of this research were to investigate the development of computational thinking (CT) skills among elementary students and to identify areas for improvement in their CT practices. Empirical investigations, accomplished in a learner-centered, problem-based learning curriculum for sixth-graders, sought to examine student proficiency…

Teaching programming skills has attracted a great deal of attention for more than a decade. One potential reason behind this is that the explicit teaching of computer programming can improve higher-order thinking skills, such as creativity. Moreover, whether or not creative programming learning activities, such as the use of…

Computational thinking is an important competence for learners in the twenty-first century. As an effective approach for cultivating competence in computational thinking, programming education has been extended from college to elementary school teaching. However, it is challenging to engage beginners in programming in elementary school education.…

Background: Being easy to learn and fun, block-based programming tools are widely used to teach students introductory programming. Scratch and LEGO robots are two popular block-based programming tools. However, the objects they manipulate are completely different. Scratch manipulates graphical virtual sprites, whereas LEGO robots manipulate…