This paper analyses the teaching and learning of computing in a Web-conferencing environment. A discourse analysis of three introductory programming learning episodes is presented to demonstrate issues and effects that arise when teaching computing using such an approach. The subject of discussion, the interactive nature of discussion and any…

The TeachScheme! Project aims to reform three aspects of introductory programming courses in secondary schools. First, we use a design method that asks students to develop programs in a stepwise fashion such that each step produces a well-specified intermediate product. Second, we use an entire series of sublanguages, not just one. Each element of…

This Australasian focused review compares a number of recent studies that have identified difficulties encountered by novices while learning programming and problem solving. These studies have shown that novices are not performing at expected levels and many novices have only a fragile knowledge of programming, which may prevent them from learning…

This paper reviews the literature related to the learning and teaching of debugging computer programs. Debugging is an important skill that continues to be both difficult for novice programmers to learn and challenging for computer science educators to teach. These challenges persist despite a wealth of important research on the subject dating…

Based on their quantitative and qualitative investigations, the authors conclude that pair programming as a strategy for teaching student teachers could be made more effective through the incorporation of principles associated with cooperative learning. They substantiate this claim by referring to a literature study about the advantages and…

The paper presents a study of novice difficulties with range conceptions in loop design. CS2 students were asked to solve four related enumeration tasks, which required various loop boundary specifications. The student solutions varied considerably in conciseness and efficiency. The solution diversity reveals significant differences in range…

Less than one half of one percent of all processors manufactured today end up in computers. The rest are embedded in other devices such as automobiles, airplanes, trains, satellites, and nearly every modern electronic device. Developing software for embedded systems requires a greater knowledge of hardware than developing for a typical desktop…

This paper proposes an evaluation framework for assessing students' comprehension of concurrent programs. The need for such a framework is illustrated by a review of various Computer Science Education forums. This review suggests that there is little pedagogical research in the area of concurrent software, particularly with respect to assessing…

The paper reports on an examination of predictors of success for an "objects-first" course. The predictors considered included prior programming experience, mathematical ability, academic and psychological variables, gender, and measures of student effort. Cognitive and academic factors such as SAT scores and critical thinking ability…

The main contribution of this paper is a proposal for a universal pedagogical pattern categorization based on teaching values and activities. This categorization would be more sustainable than the arbitrary categorization implied by pedagogical pattern language themes. Pedagogical patterns from two central patterns languages are analyzed and…

Recursion is a central concept in computer science, yet it is difficult for beginners to comprehend. Israeli high-school students learn recursion in the framework of a special modular program in computer science (Gal-Ezer & Harel, 1999). Some of them are introduced to the concept of recursion in two different paradigms: the procedural…

This paper examines the problem of studying and comparing student software designs. We propose semantic categorization as a way to organize widely varying data items. We describe how this was used to organize a particular multi-national, multi-institutional dataset, and present the results of this analysis: most students are unable to effectively…

Roles of variables is a new concept that captures tacit expert knowledge in a form that can be taught in introductory programming courses. A role describes some stereotypic use of variables, and only ten roles are needed to cover 99% of all variables in novice-level programs. This paper presents the results of an experiment where roles were…

Advanced approaches to the construction of software systems can present difficulties to learners. This is true for multi-agent systems (MAS) which exhibit concurrency, non-determinacy of structure and composition and sometimes emergent behavior characteristics. Additional barriers exist for learners because mainstream MAS technology is young and…

This article presents a study that aims at constructing a teaching framework for software development methods in higher education. The research field is a capstone project-based course, offered by the Technion's Department of Computer Science, in which Extreme Programming is introduced. The research paradigm is an Action Research that involves…