A Pair Programming Trial in the CS1 Lab

Abstract

The benefits of pair programming have been recognized for some time now. Numerous attempts have been made to introduce pair programming in the classroom to improve student learning and performance. A trial introduction of this method in the introductory Computer Science (CS1) lab-based class is reported. The noticeable improvement found in student performance is in agreement with most previous studies. This study also explores student perception of this collaborative approach to learning, and some administrative issues.

Work in progress: Investigating the effects of pair-programming on students' behavior in an advanced computer programming course

“…During the second semester, the students were distributed into pairs by the TA and the instructor. This was in accordance with the experiments presented by Khan [5] and Mendes [10]. The factors that were taken into consideration when distributing the pairs are their preference in working with a partner of the same or opposite gender, and the partner's academic level.…”

“…This is why most experiments carried out with pair-programming as a teaching technique is applied to introductory level courses [3,5,8,14]. However, a number of researchers attempted to carry out the experiments on secondyear and even advance students as well [6,10].…”

“…The literature showed two main methods of pair formation stood out for having more merits than others; random selection [5,10], and students selecting their own partners [3,5]. As the experiment was spanning over two semesters, both methods were tried, in an attempt to determine which was more beneficial to the participants.…”

“…During the first semester, students were asked to select their own partner for the duration of the semester, following the methods illustrated by Teague [3] and Khan [5] in their research. As most of the students knew each other for around a year, they opted to select a friend rather than a work partner.…”