Collaborative Research: Alice += Java

计算机科学(31)该项目是圣约瑟夫大学、伊萨卡学院和卡内基-梅隆大学的合作项目。它正在将Alice这一高影响、高兴趣的程序可视化环境整合到第一门计算机科学课程中。以前的研究已经证明，这种方法可以显著提高高风险CS专业学生在第一年的成绩和留存率。项目小组正在开发教学材料，包括教科书、实验室练习和讲座/演示幻灯片，用于使用这种综合方法教授第一门计算机科学课程。主要重点是使用可视化在面向对象的交互环境中教授基本编程概念和问题解决技术的强大核心。这项努力解决了CS专业学生在第一年学习时的高流失率问题，调查人员正在收集数据，以确定在第一节计算机科学课程中使用Alice是否会降低第一年的流失率。评估工作包括同行评议、学生态度和焦点小组、态度调查以及形成性和终结性评估的留存统计。研究人员在网上提供所有材料，并通过期刊文章和在SIGCSE、ITiCSE、FIE、CHI、HCC和CIT上的演示来传播他们的方法和结果，对于社区大学教职员工来说，在信息技术和创新会议上，最后在几个Prentice Hall信息技术(PHIT)会议上。他们还计划制作一本教科书，并创建一个在线社区。更广泛的影响集中于广泛传播其教学材料。

Computer Science (31)The project is a collaboration involving St Joseph's University, Ithaca College, and Carnegie-Mellon University. It is integrating Alice, which is a high-impact, high-interest program visualization environment, into the first computer science course. Previous work has provided evidence that this approach can significantly improve achievement and retention of high-risk CS-majors during their first year. The project team is developing instructional materials, including a textbook, laboratory exercises, and lecture/demonstration slides, for teaching the first computer science course using this integrated approach. The major emphasis is using visualization to teach a strong core of fundamental programming concepts and problem-solving techniques in an object-oriented, interactive environment. The effort addresses the high attrition rate of CS-majors during their first year of study, and the investigators are collecting data to determine whether using Alice in the first computer science course reduces the first-year attrition rate. Evaluation efforts include peer reviews, student attitudes and focus groups, attitude surveys, and retention statistics for formative and summative evaluation. The investigators are making all materials available online and disseminating their approach and results through journal articles and presentation at SIGCSE, ITiCSE, FIE, CHI, HCC, and CIT and, for community college faculty, at the Conference for Information Technology and Innovations Conferences, and finally at several Prentice Hall Information Technology (PHIT) Conferences. They also are planning to produce a textbook and create an online community. Broader impacts focus on the wide dissemination of their instructional materials.