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IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering - Special issue on artificial intelligence and software engineering
Learning to program = learning to construct mechanisms and explanations
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Mental models: towards a cognitive science of language, inference, and consciousness
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A debate on teaching computing science
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Parameter passing: the rules the students construct
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The Psychology of How Novices Learn Computer Programming
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International Journal of Human-Computer Studies
Constructivism in computer science education
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Artificial Intelligence Review
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Education and Information Technologies
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KBCS '89 Proceedings of the International Conference on Knowledge Based Computer Systems
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Working group reports from ITiCSE on Innovation and technology in computer science education
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CHI '83 Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
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International Journal of Human-Computer Studies
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Working group reports from ITiCSE on Innovation and technology in computer science education
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ITiCSE '05 Proceedings of the 10th annual SIGCSE conference on Innovation and technology in computer science education
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Conceptual models of software artifacts
Interacting with Computers
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Mental models: a theoretical overview and preliminary study
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Journal on Educational Resources in Computing (JERIC)
A principled approach to teaching OO first
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Proceedings of the 39th SIGCSE technical symposium on Computer science education
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Human-Computer Interaction
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Natural language programming: styles, strategies, and contrasts
IBM Systems Journal
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Koli Calling '07 Proceedings of the Seventh Baltic Sea Conference on Computing Education Research - Volume 88
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Illustration of paradigm pluralism in computing education research
ACE '12 Proceedings of the Fourteenth Australasian Computing Education Conference - Volume 123
A Review of Generic Program Visualization Systems for Introductory Programming Education
ACM Transactions on Computing Education (TOCE)
A Review of Generic Program Visualization Systems for Introductory Programming Education
ACM Transactions on Computing Education (TOCE)
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This article brings together, summarizes, and comments on several threads of research that have contributed to our understanding of the challenges that novice programmers face when learning about the runtime dynamics of programs and the role of the computer in program execution. More specifically, the review covers the literature on programming misconceptions, the cognitive theory of mental models, constructivist theory of knowledge and learning, phenomenographic research on experiencing programming, and the theory of threshold concepts. These bodies of work are examined in relation to the concept of a “notional machine”—an abstract computer for executing programs of a particular kind. As a whole, the literature points to notional machines as a major challenge in introductory programming education. It is argued that instructors should acknowledge the notional machine as an explicit learning objective and address it in teaching. Teaching within some programming paradigms, such as object-oriented programming, may benefit from using multiple notional machines at different levels of abstraction. Pointers to some promising pedagogical techniques are provided.