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Blocks-Based Programming and Preparation for Future Computer Science Learning

Fri, April 28, 8:15 to 10:15am, Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, Floor: Meeting Room Level, Room 221 C

Abstract

Objectives
Blocks-based programming is increasingly becoming the way younger learners are being introduced to programming and computer science more broadly (Astrachan & Briggs, 2012; Goode et al., 2012; Weintrop & Wilensky, 2016).. One of the major motivations for using blocks-based programming in introductory computing classrooms is the argument that such tools can lay an effective foundation and prepare students for future computer science learning. This poster will present data showing the soundness of this rationale based on a two-year study of blocks-based, text-based, and hybrid blocks/text programming environments in high school classrooms.

Theoretical Framework
This work brings an empirically-driven, design-based research approach to the study of classroom computer science education. Building on Structuration Theory (Wilensky & Papert, 2010) and the constructs of Webbing and Situated Abstractions (Noss & Hoyles, 1996), we investigate the representational affordances of different introductory programming modalities. The tools and curricula used in this study are grounded in the constructionist tradition (Papert, 1980).

Methods and Data Sources
This study uses a quasi-experimental design in three high school computer science classrooms with each class using a different programming modality (blocks-based, text-based, or hybrid blocks/text). Starting on the first day of school, students spent five weeks working in the introductory programming environment before transitioning to Java in the sixth week of the class. All three classes followed the same curriculum and were taught by the same teacher.

Results
Results from this study show students in the blocks-based condition scoring significantly better on the content assessment after five weeks compared students in the text condition after controlling for prior programming experience (F(2, 75) = 4.53, p = .01 with a Tukey HSD post hoc test showing the difference between Text and Blocks to be significant at p = .01). However, after ten weeks of working in Java, the students in the text condition’s scores continued to improve, while students in the blocks condition saw no gain in their performance on the assessment, resulting in no difference between the classes after 10 weeks of Java programming (F(2, 74) = .85, p = .43). This result shows that blocks-based environments support students in their learning while using the tool, but do not better prepare students for future text-based programming endeavors. This finding is consequential as it shows that blocks-based programming environments have advantages over text-based alternatives, but do not inherently better prepare learners for future text-based programming instruction.

Scholarly Significance
The contribution of this work is to open a critical dialog around the use of blocks-based programming environments in formal computer science classrooms and suggest future work that needs to be done to best take advantage of this increasingly popular programming modality in formal contexts. This work is timely and relevant for this venue given the increasing number of curricula that are being developed around blocks-based tools and the assumptions that designers, educators, and administrators hold around the outcomes of the use of blocks-based programming tools.

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