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Alternative pacing in an introductory java sequence

Published: 28 October 2004 Publication History

Abstract

In academic year 2002-3, the Information Technology (IT) Department at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) implemented an alternative programming sequence with the goal of helping students who initially struggle with programming concepts to succeed. The original IT freshman programming sequence consisted of three (3) courses, Programming for IT 1 (IT-1), Programming for IT 2 (IT-2), and Programming for IT 3 (IT-3). Since the second course in this sequence, IT-2, had traditionally been a "gatekeeper" for students, the IT Department created a decelerated two-course sequence, IT-2A and IT-2B, as an alternative option. In its first year of implementation, this option significantly increased student retention through the introductory programming sequence, improved overall student performance, and enhanced student satisfaction. These results were described in a paper presented at the 2003 CITC4 conference entitled "Implementation of Alternative Pacing in an Introductory Programming Sequence" and published by ACM Press (Whittington, Bills, and Hill, 2003).
However, the true measure of whether or not this approach was a success is how well the students who completed the decelerated option performed in the final programming course, IT-3. In IT-2A and 2B, students had been "cohorted" with other students like themselves and given more time on task. In IT-3, they had to adjust to both learning in a more competitive setting and at the standard pace.
This paper examines how the first group of students to complete the alternative programming sequence performed in the third programming course. How these students felt in terms of their preparedness for IT-3 and their overall satisfaction with the alternative programming sequence is also discussed. Finally, since this curricular change is just a part of the IT department's ongoing plans to build flexibility into the curriculum, this paper concludes with the lessons learned and the department's plans for future studies.

References

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Bruhn, R. and Burton, P., An Approach to Teaching Java Using Computers, ACM SIGCSE Bulletin, Volume 35, Issue 4 (December 2003) 94--99, ACM Press, New York, NY, USA.
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Bryce, B., The Positive Side of Failure, LDC Lately, Vol. 5, No. 3, Spring 2004, pp. 6--7.
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DeLoughry, J. Thomas, Studio Classrooms, Chronicle of Higher Education, 3/31/95, Vol. 41 Issue 29, pA19, 3p, 2c.
[4]
Hill, L., Bills, D., and Biles, J., A Studio Model Approach to Teaching Introductory Object-Oriented Programming and Problem-Solving Using Java. In Proceedings of the 3rd Annual Conference for Information Technology Education, Rochester, NY, Sept. 19--21, 2002.
[5]
Holden, E. and Weeden, E., The Impact of Prior Experience in an Information Technology Programming Course Sequence, In Proceedings of the 4th Annual Conference on Information Technology Education (Lafayette, IN, Oct. 15-18, 2003). ACM Press, New York, NY, 2003, pp. 41--46.
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Roberts, E., Strategies for Encouraging Individual Achievement in Introductory Computer Science Courses, SIGCSE Bulletin, Vol. 32, No. 1, March, 2000, pp. 295--299.
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Roddan, M., The Determinants of Student Failure and Attrition in First Year Computing Science (June 2002), http://www.dcs.gla.ac.uk/~roddanmc/Report.pdf (retrieved on 6/24/04).
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Shasha, D., and Bonnet, P., Database Tuning - Principles, Experiments, and Troubleshooting Techniques, Morgan Kaufmann, San Francisco, CA, USA, 2003, pp. 3--4.
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Whittington, K., Bills, D., and Hill, L. Implementation of Alternative Pacing in an IT Introductory Programming Sequence. In Proceedings of the 4th Annual Conference on Information Technology Education (Lafayette, IN, Oct. 15-18, 2003). ACM Press, New York, NY, 2003, 47--53.
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Wilson, B., & Shrock, S., Contributing to Success in an Introductory Computer Science Course: a Study of Twelve Factors, SIGCSE Proceedings, Charlotte, NC, February, 2001, pp. 184--188.

Cited By

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  • (2017)Adapting the Studio Based Learning Methodology to Computer Science EducationNew Directions for Computing Education10.1007/978-3-319-54226-3_8(119-142)Online publication date: 18-Apr-2017
  • (2009)Coarse-grained detection of student frustration in an introductory programming courseProceedings of the fifth international workshop on Computing education research workshop10.1145/1584322.1584332(75-80)Online publication date: 10-Aug-2009
  • (2008)Experience with Pedagogical Patterns in Introductory Java CourseInnovative Techniques in Instruction Technology, E-learning, E-assessment, and Education10.1007/978-1-4020-8739-4_59(338-341)Online publication date: 2008

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    cover image ACM Conferences
    CITC5 '04: Proceedings of the 5th conference on Information technology education
    October 2004
    300 pages
    ISBN:1581139365
    DOI:10.1145/1029533
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    Published: 28 October 2004

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    1. innovative teaching in IT
    2. introductory programming
    3. retention

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    View all
    • (2017)Adapting the Studio Based Learning Methodology to Computer Science EducationNew Directions for Computing Education10.1007/978-3-319-54226-3_8(119-142)Online publication date: 18-Apr-2017
    • (2009)Coarse-grained detection of student frustration in an introductory programming courseProceedings of the fifth international workshop on Computing education research workshop10.1145/1584322.1584332(75-80)Online publication date: 10-Aug-2009
    • (2008)Experience with Pedagogical Patterns in Introductory Java CourseInnovative Techniques in Instruction Technology, E-learning, E-assessment, and Education10.1007/978-1-4020-8739-4_59(338-341)Online publication date: 2008

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