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An investigation into novel software tools for enhancing students' higher cognitive skills in computer programming
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Sitthiworachart, Jirarat (2005) An investigation into novel software tools for enhancing students' higher cognitive skills in computer programming. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.
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Official URL: http://webcat.warwick.ac.uk/record=b2072948~S15
Abstract
Active learning is considered by many academics as an important and effective
learning strategy. Students can improve the quality of their work by developing
their higher cognitive skills through reflection on their own ideas, and through
practice of analytic and evaluative skills. Assessment is a tool for learning, but
traditional assessment methods often encourage surface learning, rather than
deep learning which is an approach to developing higher cognitive skills. Peer
assessment is one of the successful approaches, which can be used to enhance
deep learning. It is a method of motivating students, involving students
discussing, marking and providing feedback on other students' work. Although it
is often used in the context of essays, it has seldom been applied to computer
programming courses. The skill of writing good software includes understanding
different approaches to the task, and stylistic and related considerations - these
can be developed by evaluation of other programmers' solutions.
As part of a study investigating the extent that peer assessment can promote deep
learning to develop the higher cognitive skills in a programming course, a novel
web-based peer assessment tool has been developed.
- The process used is novel, since students are engaged not only in marking
each other's work, but also in evaluating the quality of marking of their
peers.
- This system is designed to provide anonymity for the whole process, in
order to ensure that the process is fair, and to encourage students to
discuss without embarrassment by using an anonymous communication
device (ACD) in a variety of roles (script authors, marker, and feedback
marker).
In this thesis, we describe and compare the learning theory and tools, which are
relevant in learning computer programming. Deep learning, which can be
described using the six categories of learning in Bloom's taxonomy, is discussed.
Other peer assessment software tools are compared and discussed. The design
and implementation of a novel web-based peer assessment system (with
anonymous communication device) are described, and set in the context of the
learning theories. The results of evaluating the tools through several experiments
involving large programming classes and an essay writing module are reported.
In this thesis, we also propose a new variation of Bloom's taxonomy, which is
appropriate to describe the skills required for tasks such as programming.
The results indicate that this approach to web-based peer assessment has
successfully helped students to develop their higher cognitive skills in learning
computer programming, and peer assessment is an accurate assessment method
in a programming course.
Item Type: | Thesis (PhD) | ||||
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Subjects: | Q Science > QA Mathematics > QA76 Electronic computers. Computer science. Computer software | ||||
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | Active learning, Computer programming -- Study and teaching, Students -- Rating of -- Computer programs | ||||
Official Date: | June 2005 | ||||
Dates: |
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Institution: | University of Warwick | ||||
Theses Department: | Department of Computer Science | ||||
Thesis Type: | PhD | ||||
Publication Status: | Unpublished | ||||
Supervisor(s)/Advisor: | Joy, Mike | ||||
Extent: | 269 leaves | ||||
Language: | eng |
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