Computer programming and learning to write

Abstract

Programming is often seen in terms of mathematical models. An additional perspective, that of programming as a means of communication between the programmer and the computer, can also be useful, particularly in teaching novices. Modern writing theories provide a way of exploring this perspective and, along with a developmental model, suggest that recognis­ing a) the qualitative difference between novice and expert cognition, b) the role of coaching in helping a novice become expert and c) the student's zone of proximal development can provide important insights into teaching programming. Unisa, a correspondence-based distance teaching university incorporates these factors in a distance coaching model consisting of the four phases of Observation, Coaching, Abstraction and Application. Students start learning a new concept through writing and experimenting with programs. Depending on their level of understanding, students take different paths through the study material and receive different levels of coaching. From this experiential basis students are led to develop appro­priate abstract models of the concepts involved and then apply this understanding to practical problems. This approach is compared briefly to other approaches to teaching novices to program.