Work in progress — Using Video Phenomenography to investigate problem solving skill development in Computer Science I

Measuring the maturation of students' problem solving skills in Computer Science I has been a difficult problem, often tackled through assessment exams. These exams generate a snapshot of student progress before and after an entire course, but do not reveal how the students learn from one day to the next. This limited data provides a scant array of tools for assessment and for the development of future courses. We employ a new technique for capturing student development in vivo called Video Phenomenography (VP), which is based on the classic method commonly used in educational psychology and utilizes videos of the students while they are working on a programming problem. Early experiments have shown that this technique can highlight differences in the problem solving strategies of students and provide feedback on the success and pitfalls of a pedagogical strategy.