An Irish Cross-Institutional User Needs Analysis of Undergraduate Programming

dc.creator	Eileen Mary Costelloe
dc.creator	Elizabeth Anne Sherry
dc.creator	Patricia Magee
dc.creator	Frances Murphy
dc.creator	Nora Brophy
dc.date	2006-07-01T00:00:00Z
dc.date.accessioned	2015-08-12T11:16:56Z
dc.date.available	2015-08-12T11:16:56Z
dc.identifier	1863-0383
dc.identifier	https://doaj.org/article/a1fa1dc058724045b219184eb8c85a37
dc.identifier.uri	http://evidence.thinkportal.org/handle/123456789/25965
dc.description	Research literature and practical experience of subject experts indicate that teaching programming to novices has proven challenging for both learner and lecturer. A number of difficulties arise when teaching novices to program. These ranges from the inadequacy of the undergraduate studentsÃ¢Â€Â™ problem-solving skills, problems with understanding programming constructs, to the complexity of the environments in which the students develop their solutions. This paper outlines a project which aims to address some of the challenges faced by novice programmers by providing them with an innovative learning tool, incorporating a set of Reusable Learning Objects (RLOs), based on sound pedagogical principles and encapsulated in a Constructivist Learning Environment (CLE). The Learning Objects will focus on the common areas of weaknesses that are determined by an Irish cross-institutional User Needs Analysis. The initial research activity was to conduct a User Needs Analysis, which was carried out in the three third level academic partner institutions and which will inform and direct the remainder of the research project. The User Needs Analysis confirmed that first year undergraduate students find programming the most challenging module they study. Programming constructs such as Arrays, Looping and Selection were shown to be the most problematic in semester one, and Methods and Polymorphism posing difficulties in semester two. Interestingly the studentsÃ¢Â€Â™ actual and perceived difficulties with the concepts were not in-line, with the students perceiving their difficulties to be less than they actually were. The students acknowledge that problem-solving abilities impacted on their performance but only 20% of students in one college admitted to thinking about their approach in designing programming solutions. The results of the User Needs Analysis directs the design and development of the RLOs and the learning tool.
dc.language	English
dc.publisher	International Association of Online Engineering (IAOE)
dc.relation	http://online-journals.org/i-jet/article/view/48
dc.relation	https://doaj.org/toc/1863-0383
dc.rights	CC BY
dc.source	International Journal of Emerging Technologies in Learning (iJET), Vol 1, Iss 2 (2006)
dc.subject	Technology (General)
dc.subject	T1-995
dc.subject	Technology
dc.subject	T
dc.subject	DOAJ:Technology (General)
dc.subject	DOAJ:Technology and Engineering
dc.subject	Theory and practice of education
dc.subject	LB5-3640
dc.subject	Education
dc.subject	L
dc.subject	DOAJ:Education
dc.subject	DOAJ:Social Sciences
dc.subject	Technology (General)
dc.subject	T1-995
dc.subject	Technology
dc.subject	T
dc.subject	DOAJ:Technology (General)
dc.subject	DOAJ:Technology and Engineering
dc.subject	Theory and practice of education
dc.subject	LB5-3640
dc.subject	Education
dc.subject	L
dc.subject	DOAJ:Education
dc.subject	DOAJ:Social Sciences
dc.subject	Technology (General)
dc.subject	T1-995
dc.subject	Technology
dc.subject	T
dc.subject	Theory and practice of education
dc.subject	LB5-3640
dc.subject	Education
dc.subject	L
dc.subject	Technology (General)
dc.subject	T1-995
dc.subject	Technology
dc.subject	T
dc.subject	Theory and practice of education
dc.subject	LB5-3640
dc.subject	Education
dc.subject	L
dc.subject	Technology (General)
dc.subject	T1-995
dc.subject	Technology
dc.subject	T
dc.subject	Theory and practice of education
dc.subject	LB5-3640
dc.subject	Education
dc.subject	L
dc.title	An Irish Cross-Institutional User Needs Analysis of Undergraduate Programming
dc.type	article