Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Assessing the Effectiveness of Emoticon-Like Scripting in Computer Programming

  • Conference paper
  • First Online:
Advances in Human Factors, Software, and Systems Engineering (AHFE 2017)

Part of the book series: Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing ((AISC,volume 598))

Included in the following conference series:

Abstract

In this paper a new method is proposed for learning computer programming. This method utilizes a set of human-readable graphemes and tokens that interactively replace the grammatical tokens of programming languages, using a concept similar to emoticons in social media. The theoretical framework of the proposed method is discussed in detail and two implementations are presented for the programming language ECMAScript (JavaScript). The results from user testing with undergraduate students show that the proposed technique improves the student’s learning outcomes in terms of syntax recall and logic comprehension, in comparison to traditional source code editors.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Lahtinen, E., Ala-Mutka, K., Järvinen, H.M.: A study of the difficulties of novice programmers. ACM SIGSCE Bull. 37(3), 14–18 (2005)

    Google Scholar 

  2. Jenkins, T.: On the difficulty of learning to program. In: Proceedings of the 3rd Conference of the LTSN Centre for Information and Computer Sciences, vol. 4, pp. 53–58 (2002)

    Google Scholar 

  3. Busch, T.: Gender differences in self-efficacy and attitudes towards computers. J. Educ. Comput. Res. 12(2), 147–158 (1995)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Jacob, R.J.K., Girouard, A., Hirshfield, L.M., Horn, M.S., Shaer, O., Solovey, E.T., Zigelbaum, J.: Reality-based interaction: a framework for PostWIMP interfaces. In: Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp. 201–210 (2008)

    Google Scholar 

  5. Sapounidis, T., Demetriadis, S., Stamelos, I.: Evaluating children performance with graphical and tangible robot programming tools. Pers. Ubiquit. Comput. 19(1), 225–237 (2015)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. McNerney, T.S.: From turtles to tangible programming bricks: explorations in physical language design. Pers. Ubiquit. Comput. 8(5), 326–337 (2004)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Sipitakiat, A., Nusen, N.: Robo-blocks: designing debugging abilities in a tangible programming system for early primary school children. In: Proceedings of the 11th International Conference on Interaction Design and Children, pp. 98–105 (2012)

    Google Scholar 

  8. Horn, M.S., Solovey, E.T., Crouser, R.J., Jacob, R.J.: Comparing the use of tangible and graphical programming languages for informal science education. In: Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp. 975–984 (2009)

    Google Scholar 

  9. Horn, M.S., Jacob, R.J.: Tangible programming in the classroom with tern. In: CHI 2007 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp. 1965–1970 (2007)

    Google Scholar 

  10. Moskal, B., Lurie, D., Cooper, S.: Evaluating the effectiveness of a new instructional approach. ACM SIGCSE Bull. 36(1), 75–79 (2004)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Sykes, E.R.: Determining the effectiveness of the 3D Alice programming environment at the computer science I level. J. Educ. Comput. Res. 36(2), 223–244 (2007)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Malan, D.J., Leitner, H.H.: Scratch for budding computer scientists. ACM SIGCSE Bull. 39(1), 223–227 (2007)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Meerbaum-Salant, O., Armoni, M., Ben-Ari, M.: Learning computer science concepts with scratch. Comput. Sci. Educ. 23(3), 239–264 (2013)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Coulmas, F.: The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Writing Systems, p. 174. Blackwell, Oxford (1996)

    Google Scholar 

  15. Davis, D.F.: Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user acceptance of information technology. MIS Q. 13(3), 319–340 (1989)

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Digital Worlds Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA

    Angelos Barmpoutis, Kim Huynh, Peter Ariet & Nicholas Saunders

Authors
  1. Angelos Barmpoutis
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Kim Huynh
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Peter Ariet
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Nicholas Saunders
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Angelos Barmpoutis .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida, USA

    Tareq Ahram

  2. University of Central Florida, Winter Park, Florida, USA

    Waldemar Karwowski

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG

About this paper

Cite this paper

Barmpoutis, A., Huynh, K., Ariet, P., Saunders, N. (2018). Assessing the Effectiveness of Emoticon-Like Scripting in Computer Programming. In: Ahram, T., Karwowski, W. (eds) Advances in Human Factors, Software, and Systems Engineering. AHFE 2017. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 598. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60011-6_7

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60011-6_7

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-60010-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-60011-6

  • eBook Packages: EngineeringEngineering (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation