Teaching Beginners to Program: should we start with block-based, text-based, or both notations?

Teaching programming poses countless challenges. One of them is determining the most effective notation to introduce coding concepts to beginners. This paper examines the merits and drawbacks of introducing block-based, text-based, or both notations at the same time when it comes to learning basic programming concepts. By comparing these approaches, the objective of this research is to clarify and assess the learning outcomes related to teaching beginners through different notations. In this empirical study, we report on a controlled experiment during short-term visits that promoted programming in primary schools. Our multinational study divided participants into three groups, one using block-based, one using text-based, and one using both notations. After training, the participants were solving practical programming assignments. The study results revealed that the participants’ performance was not influenced by notation usage, as there was no statistical significance between the three groups. However, the performance outcomes were correlated with the duration of the sessions. Our findings from the controlled experiment suggest that educators can utilize different notations confidently while teaching beginners the first steps in programming.