Enhancing problem‐solving skills of novice programmers in an introductory programming course

Novices should focus both on problem‐solving skills and programming knowledge (syntax and semantics) in learning to program. Most introductory programming courses pay more attention to programming knowledge. This study introduces a PAAM model (Problem Analysis Algorithmic Model) in the teaching–lear...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Computer applications in engineering education Vol. 30; no. 1; pp. 174 - 194
Main Authors: Malik, Sohail Iqbal, Mathew, Roy, Al‐Sideiri, Abir, Jabbar, Jasiya, Al‐Nuaimi, Rim, Tawafak, Ragad M.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Hoboken Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.01.2022
Subjects:
Applications programs
E‐learning
Learning
Machine learning
novice programmer
problem‐solving skills
Programming
programming education
pseudo‐code
Semantics
Skills
Students
Teachers
Teaching
ISSN:1061-3773, 1099-0542
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Novices should focus both on problem‐solving skills and programming knowledge (syntax and semantics) in learning to program. Most introductory programming courses pay more attention to programming knowledge. This study introduces a PAAM model (Problem Analysis Algorithmic Model) in the teaching–learning process of the introductory programming (IP) course. The model focuses on problem statement requirements (input, output, and process) and problem‐solving skills for novices. A web application was developed to offer the model in the course. Two surveys were conducted to collect the responses of IP students. Semistructured interviews were performed with the IP instructors. The final exam grades of the IP course over the last two semesters were compared to determine the impact of the PAAM model on the students gain. Results show that most students appreciated the model in the teaching–learning process of the course. The model helps students to develop problem‐solving skills (p = .002), understand problem statement inputs (p = .003), process (p = .004), outputs (p = .034), and motivates them to learn programming (p = .031). The application impacts positively on students' behavior and attitude toward completing the programming exercises in the course. Overall, the PAAM approach (11.1%) impacts positively by decreasing the attrition rate (9.9%) in the course when it is compared with the traditional approach (21.0%).
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
content type line 14
ISSN:1061-3773
1099-0542
DOI:10.1002/cae.22450