EASy-DSBuilder: automated assessment of tree data structures in computer science teaching

This paper presents EASy-DSBuilder, an e-assessment tool for assessing fundamental concepts of binary tree data structure operations (i.e. search, insert, and delete operations) taught in Computer Science (CS) lectures. Students can manipulate data structures by adding nodes and freely move them, as well as connect and disconnect nodes within a drag-and-drop interface. At the same time, teachers can easily create new exercises based on their own data structures by uploading their Java implementation. We discuss EASy-DSBuilder's user interface and its general feedback mechanism. We also conducted a user study evaluating EASy-DSBuilder's user interface, visualisation techniques, and overall performance. Both qualitative and quantitative results show that usability is well-liked and learning success is promising.