"It Depends on Whether or Not I'm Lucky" How Students in an Introductory Programming Course Discover, Select, and Assess the Utility of Web-Based Resources

Abstract

University-level introductory programming courses (e.g., CS1) offer a structured and formal approach for learning programming where instructors design their own curriculum and materials to help students learn difficult concepts. But, there are a myriad of free resources increasingly available online for learning programming that university students can easily access at their fingertips. In this paper, we investigate to what extent students in CS1 make use of resources curated by their instructor vs. online resources that they locate on their own. We conducted surveys and interviews in two consecutive CS1-equivalent classes at a large North-American university and explored how students made selections and assessed the relevance and utility of web-based resources. We observed that students had a strong desire for quick answers and looked for 'exact' matches for their queries in forums rather than consulting videos or other resources that provide higher level explanations more suitable for novices. However, given that these students had a limited vocabulary related to CS1 topics, they struggled in locating the desired information and relied on shallow trial-and-error processes without a clear strategy or self-reflection. Interestingly, despite the lack of perceived success, students still considered their pursuit of online resources as more convenient and less costly than asking for help. Our main contribution is in presenting insights about CS1 students' motivations and behaviours in using web-based resources on their own. We reflect on these findings by drawing upon theories from learning sciences and information sciences.