Learning Objects for Introductory Programming

Introduction

These learning objects have been developed as part of a project to help tackle a significant educational problem: the teaching and learning of introductory programming. There were two primary concerns in developing the learning objects: they should be pedagogically effective, and they should be maximally reusable.

There is some controversy over the term ‘learning object’. Each learning object we developed is characterised by being a cohesive learning resource focused on one clear learning goal. Our learning objects have been developed for basic programming in Java.

The project has developed:

• innovative principles for authoring learning objects
• a set of learning objects that embody rich pedagogical techniques such as interactive visualisation and scaffolding
• a version of the objects to be used on a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA).

The learning objects have been used by over 1,000 students in two academic years at London Metropolitan University, and Bolton Institute of Higher Education. In the first year there were marked improvements in student pass rates, which were largely sustained in the second year. Their use has been thoroughly evaluated, and some of the evaluation data and the module results are presented on the Evaluation page. The objects won a European Academic Software Award in 2004.

For information on the design and pedagogical impact of these learning objects follow the appropriate link below for Powerpoint presentations or full papers:

Follow the links below for examples of the learning objects, evaluation results, published and presented papers, PDA versions, links to other resources, and contact details.

• Examples - examples of some of the learning objects developed
• Evaluation - some of the results from the evaluation phase
• Papers - papers and presentations about the project
• PDA objects - examples of the objects adapted for a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant)
• Links - links to other projects and sites relating to learning objects
• Contacts - the project team and how to contact us

These learning objects have been produced by London Metropolitan University and Bolton Institute, with support from the HEA-ICS

Updated 12 August, 2005