Can first-year students program yet?: a study revisited

Abstract

The McCracken et al. working group paper is often cited for the proposition that students can't program. In that study, students from four different institutions were each assigned to implement one of three versions of a calculator. More than half of the students failed to produce a program that compiled and executed in the time assigned. Lost in this discussion, however, is the fact that the original paper had the goal of evaluating its instrument, as well as the students. We examine and adjust their instrument, and present the results of the revised study. With a modifed instrument, we have obtained significantly improved results.