A Meta-Study of Algorithm Visualization Effectiveness

Algorithm visualization (AV) technology graphically illustrates how algorithms work. Despite the intuitive appeal of the technology, it has failed to catch on in mainstream computer science education. Some have attributed this failure to the mixed results of experimental studies designed to substant...

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Vydané v:Journal of visual languages and computing Ročník 13; číslo 3; s. 259 - 290
Hlavní autori: HUNDHAUSEN, CHRISTOPHER D., DOUGLAS, SARAH A., STASKO, JOHN T.
Médium: Journal Article
Jazyk:English
Vydavateľské údaje: Elsevier Ltd 01.06.2002
Predmet:
Algorithm visualization
Empirical studies of effectiveness
Literature reviews
Meta-analysis
Software visualization
Literature reviews
Empirical studies of effectiveness
Software visualization
Algorithm visualization
Meta-analysis
ISSN:1045-926X
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Popis
Shrnutí:Algorithm visualization (AV) technology graphically illustrates how algorithms work. Despite the intuitive appeal of the technology, it has failed to catch on in mainstream computer science education. Some have attributed this failure to the mixed results of experimental studies designed to substantiate AV technology's educational effectiveness. However, while several integrative reviews of AV technology have appeared, none has focused specifically on the software's effectiveness by analyzing this body of experimental studies as a whole. In order to better understand the effectiveness of AV technology, we present a systematic meta-study of 24 experimental studies. We pursue two separate analyses: an analysis of independent variables , in which we tie each study to a particular guiding learning theory in an attempt to determine which guiding theory has had the most predictive success; and an analysis of dependent variables, which enables us to determine which measurement techniques have been most sensitive to the learning benefits of AV technology. Our most significant finding is that how students use AV technology has a greater impact on effectiveness than what AV technology shows them. Based on our findings, we formulate an agenda for future research into AV effectiveness.
ISSN:1045-926X
DOI:10.1006/jvlc.2002.0237