Enhancing The Teaching Of CS 1 By Programming Mobile Apps In MIT App Inventor
Kefei Wang · 2015
This paper presents the development of a curriculum of CS 1 course, which conveys the basics of programming techniques and concepts of Computer Science (CS).To build a solid foundation for prospective CS majors, while also attract students from other subject areas, a new pedagogy of programming was adopted by using MIT App Inventor.It is a blocks-based programming environment that enables students to create apps for Android devices without worrying about syntax.We developed a series of hand-on modules into the course work.Thus, students were motivated to make a grater effort to learn the concepts embodied in the modules.Through this engaging and intriguing method, the freshly designed curriculum helped students master a number of vital skills in problem solving, computational thinking, design, and teamwork.Pre-survey and post-survey were conducted to study the acceptance of the new teaching method.The study indicated the curriculum not only helped motivate students from all majors, but also improved their performance.