Increased Retention of Early Computer Science and Software Engineering Students Using Pair Programming

Female Under-Representation in Computing Education and Industry - A Survey of Issues and Interventions

“…Inkpen, Booth, Klawe and Upitis [43] showed that gender grouping improved performance and attitudes in the computing education environment more significantly in females than males. Other studies [13] and [74] have indicated that the implementation of pairprogramming is beneficial for all computer science students, especially female students at post-secondary levels. Werner, Hanks and McDowell [74] further demonstrated that it particularly improves the confidence of females and consequently reduces attrition levels.…”

Faculty adoption of teaching innovations that promote diversity and student retention in undergraduate computing

“…Through their collaboration, students solve problems, talk through approaches to coding, and discuss and resolve points of divergence. Evaluative studies have produced mixed but generally positive results regarding pair programming's effects on student experience of the class and student retention in the major, as well as the quality of student projects, the distribution of limited resources like hardware or instructor attention, and the duration of student time spent on task (Carver et al 2007;Hannay et al 2009;McDowell et al 2003;Radermacher and Walia 2011;Williams 2000). Agile and pair programming were combined into a single item in the survey because pair programming is often applied in Agile environments, because they are conceptually similarly, and because combining items reduced the length of the survey for participants.…”

“…Described in more detail in "Survey Items" in the "Methods" section, student-centric practices that can increase student outcomes, diversity, and retention in CS higher education include using relevant and meaningful assignments Forte 2003); the Agile code development process (Knudson and Radermacher 2011;Monett 2013;Perera 2009); pair programming (Carver et al 2007;Hannay et al 2009;Radermacher and Walia 2011); process oriented guided inquiry learning (POGIL) (Farrell, Moog, and Spencer 1999;Hu and Campbell 2017;Kussmaul 2012;VanDeGrift 2017); providing lecture videos for student use outside of class (Barker, Hovey, Subhlok, et al 2014;Brandsteidl et al 2012;Chandra 2011;Dickson et al 2012;Traphagan, Kucsera, and Kishi 2010); and flipping or inverting the classroom (Bishop and Verleger 2013;Mason, Shuman, and Cook 2013;Redekopp and Ragusa 2013). Results of these recommendations often depend on how a practice is integrated in a course (for example see Davies, Dean, and Ball 2013; Findlay-Thompson and Mombourquette 2014 for critiques of flipped/inverted classrooms), but the consensus is that these student-centered practices offer learning and retention advantages over "traditional teaching methods" for undergraduate education in computer science and other STEM disciplines.…”

“…For example, research suggests that students leave computing and other STEM majors because their learning experiences in college are often heavily routinized, impersonal, and solitary, and the presentation of information is often abstract and unconnected with personal or social issues Buckingham 2007;. Innovative teaching strategies such as pair programming (Carver et al 2007;McDowell et al 2003;Radermacher and Walia 2011;Williams 2000), flipped/inverted classrooms (Álvarez 2012;Berrett 2012;FindlayThompson and Mombourquette 2014;Frydenberg 2013;Missildine et al 2013;Roehl, Reddy, and Shannon 2013), video lecture capture (Abdous and Yoshimura 2010; Brandsteidl et al 2012;Briggs 2007;Toppin 2011), and using socially relevant real-world assignments Forte 2003;Margolis and Fisher 2002;) increase student engagement and persistence in the major by bolstering student interactivity and by illustrating the applicability of content to students' career goals and interests. These teaching strategies have a pronounced beneficial impact on retaining women, but they also improve men's retention as well .…”

Collaborative Learning Eliminates the Negative Impact of Gender Stereotypes on Women’s Self-Concept

“…This collaborative experience is known to enhance students' confidence in their computer programming abilities, is perceived as more enjoyable than working in isolation, and enhances performance and course completion, which is linked with persistence in computing. 3,15,16,14 In addition to their overall effectiveness, collaborative instruction methods, such as supplemental instruction and pair programming, have important advantages in terms of overcoming obstacles faced by underrepresented students in computing. Specifically, these interventions provide a supportive and relatively informal atmosphere, addressing the sense of isolation reported by many underrepresented students, 25 and boosting confidence and performance among those students.…”