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Documents authored by O’Riordan, Fiona

Document
DOI: 10.4230/OASIcs.ICPEC.2024.6
An Experience with Adaptive Formative Assessment for Motivating Novices in Introductory Programming Learning

Authors: Jagadeeswaran Thangaraj, Monica Ward, and Fiona O’Riordan

Published in: OASIcs, Volume 122, 5th International Computer Programming Education Conference (ICPEC 2024)

Abstract
This study presents empirical research that uses adaptive formative assessment framework in addition to traditional lectures to motivate novice students in an introductory programming course. The primary goal of this work is to provide guidance for the creation of adaptive formative assessments in Python programming language to inspire novice students. The experiment is based on lessons learned from the literature and pedagogical theories that support learning through assessment and scaffolding. This study investigates how the experiment helped the novices, whether it increased their confidence, whether it assisted in identifying and correcting common errors, and whether it covered the material on learning modular programming components. It report on extensive survey results of over 265 attempts of 90 students taking CS1 (introductory programming) that included five quizzes covering fundamental concepts. The students responded favorably to the experiment, and results are also included.
Cite as

Jagadeeswaran Thangaraj, Monica Ward, and Fiona O’Riordan. An Experience with Adaptive Formative Assessment for Motivating Novices in Introductory Programming Learning. In 5th International Computer Programming Education Conference (ICPEC 2024). Open Access Series in Informatics (OASIcs), Volume 122, pp. 6:1-6:12, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2024)

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@InProceedings{thangaraj_et_al:OASIcs.ICPEC.2024.6,
  author =	{Thangaraj, Jagadeeswaran and Ward, Monica and O’Riordan, Fiona},
  title =	{{An Experience with Adaptive Formative Assessment for Motivating Novices in Introductory Programming Learning}},
  booktitle =	{5th International Computer Programming Education Conference (ICPEC 2024)},
  pages =	{6:1--6:12},
  series =	{Open Access Series in Informatics (OASIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-347-8},
  ISSN =	{2190-6807},
  year =	{2024},
  volume =	{122},
  editor =	{Santos, Andr\'{e} L. and Pinto-Albuquerque, Maria},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/OASIcs.ICPEC.2024.6},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-209755},
  doi =		{10.4230/OASIcs.ICPEC.2024.6},
  annote =	{Keywords: Assessment and feedback, Computer programming, CS1, Formative assessment, Introductory programming, Novice students}
}
Document
DOI: 10.4230/OASIcs.ICPEC.2023.7
A Systematic Review of Formative Assessment to Support Students Learning Computer Programming

Authors: Jagadeeswaran Thangaraj, Monica Ward, and Fiona O’Riordan

Published in: OASIcs, Volume 112, 4th International Computer Programming Education Conference (ICPEC 2023)

Abstract
Formative assessment aims to increase student understanding, instructor instruction, and learning by providing feedback on students' progress. The goal of this systematic review is to discover trends on formative assessment techniques used to support computer programming learners by synthesizing literature published between 2013 and 2023. 17 articles that were peer-reviewed and published in journals were examined from the initial search of 197 studies. According to the findings, all the studies were conducted at the higher education level and only a small number at the secondary school level. Overall, most studies found that motivation, scaffolding, and engagement were the three main goals of feedback, with less research finding that metacognitive goals were the intended outcomes. The two techniques for facilitating formative feedback that were used most frequently were compiler or testing based error messages and customised error messages. The importance of formative feedback is highlighted in the reviewed articles, supporting the contention that assessments used in programming courses should place a heavy emphasis on motivating students to increase their level of proficiency. This study also suggests a formative assessment that employs an adaptive strategy to evaluate the ability level of the novice students and motivate them to learn programming to acquire the necessary knowledge.
Cite as

Jagadeeswaran Thangaraj, Monica Ward, and Fiona O’Riordan. A Systematic Review of Formative Assessment to Support Students Learning Computer Programming. In 4th International Computer Programming Education Conference (ICPEC 2023). Open Access Series in Informatics (OASIcs), Volume 112, pp. 7:1-7:13, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2023)

Copy BibTex To Clipboard

@InProceedings{thangaraj_et_al:OASIcs.ICPEC.2023.7,
  author =	{Thangaraj, Jagadeeswaran and Ward, Monica and O’Riordan, Fiona},
  title =	{{A Systematic Review of Formative Assessment to Support Students Learning Computer Programming}},
  booktitle =	{4th International Computer Programming Education Conference (ICPEC 2023)},
  pages =	{7:1--7:13},
  series =	{Open Access Series in Informatics (OASIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-290-7},
  ISSN =	{2190-6807},
  year =	{2023},
  volume =	{112},
  editor =	{Peixoto de Queir\'{o}s, Ricardo Alexandre and Teixeira Pinto, M\'{a}rio Paulo},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/OASIcs.ICPEC.2023.7},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-185039},
  doi =		{10.4230/OASIcs.ICPEC.2023.7},
  annote =	{Keywords: Automatic assessment, Computer programming, Formative assessment, Higher education, Novice programmer, Systematic review}
}
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