Online Programming Language Learning Using Massive Open Online Courses in Saudi Universities

Abstract

Severalstudies stated that Computer Science (CS) students at Saudi Arabia universities face difficulties in programming languages learning (PLL) and need more assistance. Fortunately, Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) have been recognized as modern meansthat could be acceptable amongst CS learners. This piece of research aims to clarify the importance of enhancing PLL via MOOCs in Saudi Arabia. This research applied a quantitative research approach that utilized questionnaire as a research instrument. The survey was distributed among CS students to illustrate the current situation of the students’ need and acceptance of MOOCs on PLL. The investigation included 132 participants from different departments in the faulty of Computer Science (CS) at Umm Alqura University and Taif University in Saudi Arabia. The questionnaire results show that 98% believe that they need additional courses in PLL and 94% are accepting the idea of utilizing MOOCs on PLL, on the other hand, the results also show that 77% of the participants have not attended a single PLL course via MOOC. Other results and future research are discussed as wel