A Qualitative Exploration of Programming Instruction for Alternative Endpoints in Post-Secondary Computing Education

Hybrid Event: 1180 Duderstadt / Zoom

Abstract: Undergraduate students are taking computer science (CS) courses, even if they are not planning to become computer science majors. However, recommendations for post-secondary computing curriculum presume students are learning computer science for a career goal such as software development. Prior work about non-majors in introductory programming courses have revealed additional reasons why students learn programming: such as to become conversational programmers, computational scientists, computational artists, or end-user and vernacular programmers. These purposes are not well served by programming education built around the creation of software professionals, which can lead to students with non-technological career goals feeling unwelcome or uninterested in CS courses. In my dissertation, I explore post-secondary programming instruction designed for alternate endpoints in computing. Through interviews with educators of primary and secondary school teachers, I document how K-12 teachers learn to program and debug. Through interviews with 24 undergraduate students in elective general education programming courses, I explore why and how students outside of CS choose to learn programming. I additionally investigate how students in this context approach programming and debugging within their creative, open-ended assignments. My findings build upon prior work to highlight additional reasons why non-CS majors might want to study computing, and how students’ computing-related goals affect their decision-making when creating and refining programs.