Programming Survey

The refined problem that interests me concerns the rhetorical and media-specific functions of the texts that people used to learn (or turn away from) programming computers, particularly (based on initial responses) the OEM manuals that were packaged with early personal computers that contain programming examples and language tutorials (for example, The Applesoft Tutorial that accompanied Apple //+ computers from 1979-1982). A cursory look at online discussion threads and polls reveals that many people consider themselves self-taught, or starting programming at home long before receiving any formal instruction at school. These resources can be analyzed to reveal the computer models used to learn programming. Sometimes they mention using OEM manuals, magazines or other texts; however, a new survey and interview process needs to be created that focuses on discovering these texts and how they were used. Use a blog posting to host the survey and its responses, or some other hosted, on line survey instrument. Invite participants of prior discussions and surveys to participate in the new survey (eventually; for now just invite friends, coworkers, and colleagues). Interview candidates can then be selected from the survey respondents. Please answer these questions:

Have you ever written computer programs?

Do you remember how old you were when you started programming? (Or what grade you were in?)

Can you recall the setting of your first programming experiences? (Was it at school, at home, at a friend's, some other family member, another place?)

Did you work alone or with other people?

And what model did you use? (Was it made by Apple, Commodore, IBM, Tandy, Texas Instruments?)

What was the programming language?

Do you remember if you used any books that were with the computer?

What do you remember about them?

Did they contain programs that you typed in?

Did they contain pictures?

Did you read the text?

Ask similar questions for those who respond negatively to the first question, and did not program computers. They still will recall the first places they remember using computers, their approximate age, and perhaps less clearly, the model. The researcher (or proxy) can guess at which texts they may have used, and for certain models, the fact of their absence. Thus I can collect information about the negative effects of bundled texts for particular models and particular people who never became programmers. Please answer these questions:

If you did not write programs, do you remember how old you were when you first used a computer?

Can you recall the setting of your first computer using experiences?

Were you alone or with other people?

Do you remember what type of computer it was?

Do you remember using any books were with the computer?

Do your remember anything about them?


In connecting this work with mainstream research in teaching and learning computer programming, I am hypothesizing that certain texts may impose "more guidance" than their absence or other texts during the unmediated discovery of the computer's programming possibilities, and that certain texts may provide the function of the "metacourse" recommended by Perkins, Schwartz, and Simmons for novice programmers. Texts may also function like a partner in the "pair programming" research discussed by Denner and Werner without the authoritarian auspices of an adult teacher. Also consider how media-specific features of colorful, spiral-bound printed texts such as The Applesoft Tutorialdifferentiate their rhetorical and practical functions from other types of texts, such as browser-based resources or help features built into Integrated Development Environments.

References

• Bogost, Ian. "Pascal Spoken Here: Learning about Learning Programming from the Apple ][." [Weblog entry.] Ian Bogost Blog. 19 Feb 2010. (http://www.bogost.com/blog/pascal_spoken_here.shtml) 12 Oct 2010.
• Brin, David. "Why Johnny Can't Code." Salon. Salon, 14 Sept 2006. (http://www.salon.com/technology/feature/2006/09/14/basic). 3 Oct 2010.
• Cummings, Robert E. "Coding with power: Toward a rhetoric of computer coding and composition." Computers and Composition 23.4 (2006): p. 430-443. Print.
• Denner, Jill, and Linda Werner. "Computer Programming in Middle School: How Pairs Respond to Challenges." Journal of Educational Computing Research 37.2 (2007): 131-50. Print.
• Mayer, Richard E. Introduction. Teaching and Learning Computer Programming: Multiple Research Perspectives. Ed. Richard E. Mayer. Hillsdale, N.J: L. Erlbaum Associates, 1988. Print.
• Perkins, D.N, Steve Schwartz, and Rebecca Simmons. "Instructional Strategies for the Problems of Novice Programmers." Teaching and Learning Computer Programming: Multiple Research Perspectives. Ed. Richard E. Mayer. Hillsdale, N.J: L. Erlbaum Associates, 1988. Print.
• Vodounon, Maurice A. "Exploring the relationship between modularization ability and performance in the C programming language: the case of novice programmers and expert programmers." The Free Library. 22 June 2006. (http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Exploring the relationship between modularization ability and...-a0144705087) 10 Oct 2010.

Participate in the survey by copying the appropriate set of questions into a comment (programmer or nonprogrammer).