CodeWorkout
Stephen H. Edwards, Krishnan Panamalai Murali · 2017
Learning programming techniques can be challenging and frustrating for many students. Many instructors use drill-and-practice strategies to help students develop basic programming techniques and improve their confidence. Online systems that provide short programming exercises with immediate, automated feedback are often seen as a valuable approach to drill-and-practice. However, the relationship between practicing with short programming exercises and performance on larger programming assignments or exams is unclear. This paper describes CodeWorkout, an open-source drill-and-practice system that supports short programming exercises and multiple choice questions. CodeWorkout combines an open, gradual engagement model that allows any student to practice exercises, whether or not they have an account or are enrolled in a course, together with powerful course management features that support graded assignments, quizzes, and even practicum style exams. It also provides a rich data collection and evaluation infrastructure for educational research purposes. We report on initial experiences using CodeWorkout in a CS1 course, including student perceptions of the tool and its benefits.