programming for it students quintin gee qg2@ecs.soton.ac.uk learning technologies group

Programming forIT Students

Quintin Gee

qg2@ecs.soton.ac.uk

Learning Technologies Group

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IntroductionWhich students are we talking

about?What do they study at the moment?Why teach them programming?What are students fearful of?Can we teach only algorithms?How do we assess these students?How do we handle diversity?Future work

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Direct from school Transfer from Computer Science Mature students (23 and older) Other institutions and Overseas

IT Student recruitment

2004/05: 70% – 3% – 7% – 20%

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IT Graduates IT Management trainees IT Operations/Network/Technical Unemployed, seeking work Further HE Started own business

2004: 35% – 35% – 10% – 10% – 10%

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Syllabus – Level 1Information Systems StrategyComputational Systems & Problem-SolvingContemporary Information HandlingOperating SystemsPersonal DevelopmentUnderstanding Organisations & ManagementAlgorithms & ProgrammingComputer ArchitectureElectronic Communication & The IndividualFirst Integrative Project (both semesters, 30%)

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Reasons for teaching prog.

because they are studying computers “common to all computing programmes

… At its heart is programming” understand the uses and limitations of

computer technology appreciation of the software that drives

the computer, and how it is generated Students want to learn a usable skill

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Reasons against Student apprehension Students have limited time It is wasteful if they are not going to

become professional programmers Can manage with algorithms only

approach [!] “Students need to see from the

beginning how to connect abstractions to actions”

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Student Apprehension

Before After

Nu

mb

er

of

Stu

den

ts

Level of Confidence

01

23

45

67

0 1 2 3 4 5

0

12

3

4

56

7

0 1 2 3 4 5

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Programming vs. Coding

Algorithms only What data

structures? What language? How are they

implemented for testing?

What IDE? What

constructs? What syntax?

Isn’t this just duplication?

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Language Assembler TGF High Level Languages

System language Application language

Prolog/LISP and their derivatives Iconic languages: B# and

RAPTOR Application Generators

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Does it matter? IDE must be simple enough Syntax must be simple enough Data structures

must be complex enough Problems must be varied Process must be exciting/fun/…

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Assessment

Specification 25%

User Guide 20%

Design 20%

Testing 15%

Deliverable 5%

Logbook 15%

mark allocation for programming project

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Diversity Space Cadets

“rocket scientists”, confident with programming in the language

Space Monkeys “strugglers”, apprehensive, little

or no knowledge of language Paired working

Self-chosen, individual assignments

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Future WorkThe work has been taken forward: Java used at the moment with

BlueJ VB .NET was to be re-introduced JavaScript is the likely route

Comparisons of before and after will be undertaken

New group set up to discuss this

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Programming forIT Students

Quintin Gee

qg2@ecs.soton.ac.uk

Learning Technologies Group

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B#

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USAFA Raptor