On-line Support for Modern Programming Language Instruction

这个国家迫切需要更多受过计算机科学训练的人。目前，进入美国高校CS专业的学生人数并没有增加，就女性和少数族裔学生而言，实际上是在下降。因此，如果我们要满足国家对计算机科学研究人员、软件开发人员和信息技术工作者的需求，更有效地吸引、参与、支持和留住计算机科学专业的学生是至关重要的。我们的项目通过为计算机编程入门课程开发一个创新的多媒体教学软件原型来解决这些问题。这些软件工具将建立在现有的OWL在线教学系统之上，该系统已在化学、物理和数学方面取得了巨大成功。所提出的一系列软件工具旨在使具有广泛计算背景的学生更容易获得入门编程和解决问题的技术。这个概念验证项目将包括一套相当广泛的基于owl的“单步”学习活动，一个更复杂的多阶段问题解决练习的小集合，一个完整研究的评估计划，包括该研究的基线数据，以及CS-OWL机器在我们课堂上的性能的初步统计评估。-通过创建多项选择题和填空题来构建一套关于代码行为的问题，并使用现有的OWL机制来自动评分，收集统计数据，并为参与的学生保存课堂记录-构建一系列嵌入OWL的交互式活动，这些活动说明并培养基本的面向对象编程技能。-为基础Java代码示例数据库制定索引方案，以培养学生的阅读技能，并为其他CS-OWL活动提供原材料。-发展有指导的问题解决练习，旨在教授多步骤解决问题的技巧。制定一份评估计划，为未来几个学期CS1课程的学生表现建立一个基线评估，为未来的全面评估奠定基础。我们还希望提供一些初步的统计数据，显示CS-OWL系统是一个有效的学习工具的一些早期迹象。

Computer Science (31)This country urgently needs more people trained in computer science. At present the number of students entering the CS pipeline in American colleges and universities is not increasing and, in the case of female and minority students, is actually declining. Thus if we are to meet our national need for CS researchers, software developers, and information technology workers, it is vital to attract, engage, support, and retain computer science students more effectively. Our project addresses these issues by developing a prototype for innovative multimedia instructional software for introductory computer programming classes. These software tools will be built on top of the existing OWL on-line instruction system, a system that has been used with great success in chemistry, physics and mathematics. The array of proposed software tools is designed to make the techniques of introductory programming and problem-solving more accessible for students with a wide range of backgrounds in computing. This proof of concept project will include a fairly extensive suite of "single-step" OWL-based learning activities, a small collection of more complex, multistage problem solving exercises, an evaluation plan for a full study, including baseline data for that study, and a preliminary statistical assessment of the performance of CS-OWL machinery in our classes.- Construction of a suite of questions about code behavior by creating multiple choice and fill-in-the-blank questions for beginning CS1 activities, and using existing OWL machinery to automate grading, gather statistics, and keep class records for participating students- Construction of a collection of OWL-embedded interactive activities, which illustrate and develop elementary OO programming skills.- Develop the indexing scheme for a database of elementary Java code examples, for the purpose of developing student reading skills, and for the purpose of supplying raw material for other CS-OWL activities. - Development of guided problem solving exercises, which are designed to teach multi-step problem solving skills. develop three or four multi-stage problem-solving examples- Develop an evaluation plan in which lays the groundwork for a future full evaluation by establishing a baseline assessment of student performance in our CS1 classes over the next several semesters. We also expect to provide some preliminary statistics that show some early signs that our CS-OWL system is an effective learning tool.