Applying the Extreme-Based Teaching Model in Post-Secondary Online Classroom Setting: A Field Experiment

Authors: Leon Pan

Abstract:

The first programming course within post-secondary education has long been recognized as a challenging endeavor for both educators and students alike. Historically, these courses have exhibited high failure rates and a notable number of dropouts. Instructors often lament students' lack of effort on their coursework, and students often express frustration that the teaching methods employed are not effective. Drawing inspiration from the successful principles of Extreme Programming, this study introduces an approach—the Extremes-based teaching model—aimed at enhancing the teaching of introductory programming courses. To empirically determine the effectiveness of the model, a comparison was made between a section taught using the extreme-based model and another utilizing traditional teaching methods. Notably, the extreme-based teaching class required students to work collaboratively on projects, while also demanding continuous assessment and performance enhancement within groups. This paper details the application of the extreme-based model within the post-secondary online classroom context and presents the compelling results that emphasize its effectiveness in advancing the teaching and learning experiences. The extreme-based model led to a significant increase of 13.46 points in the weighted total average and a commendable 10% reduction in the failure rate.

Keywords: Extreme-based teaching model, innovative pedagogical methods, project-based learning, team-based learning.

References:

[1] Leon Pan, Designing an Extreme Based Teaching Model for the First Programming Course, the 2021 International Conference on Computational Science and Computational Intelligence, December 15-17, 2021; Las Vegas, USA
[2] Noman Islam, A qualitative study of major programming languages: teaching programming languages to computer science students, International Journal of Information and Communication Technology, January 2016
[3] Beth Simon, Predictors of success in a first programming course, https://www.researchgate.net/publication/228820766_Predictors_of_success_in_a_first_programming_course
[4] Samer Al-Imamy etc. On the Development of a Programming Teaching Tool: The Effect of Teaching by Templates on the Learning Process, January 2006, Journal of Information Technology Education: Research 5:271-283
[5] Azad Ali and David Smith, Teaching an Introductory Programming Language in a General Education Course, Journal of Information Technology Education: Innovations in Practice, Volume 13, 2014
[6] Ali Alammary, Blended learning models for introductory programming courses: A systematic review, September 5, 2019, https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0221765
[7] Ellen Murphy, Tom Crick, and James H. Davenport, An Analysis of Introductory Programming Courses at UK Universities, https://arxiv.org/ftp/arxiv/papers/1609/1609.06622.pdf
[8] What to teach as the first programming language and why, http://tomasp.net/blog/2019/first-language/
[9] Gwen Solomon, Project-based learning: A primer, Technology & Learning; Dayton Vol. 23, Iss. 6, (Jan 2003): 20-30.
[10] Natarajan Vivekananthamoorthy, Sankar Shanmuganathan, R,Siva, Dudekula Sharmila, New Paradigms for Innovation in Teaching and Learning Process, 7th International Conference on ICT and Knowledge Engineering, January 2009