The Effectiveness of Collaboration Using the Hackathon to Promote Computer Programming Skills

A model learning environment for a 21st-century Information Technology (IT) graduate comprises of both technical and soft skills. New trends are emerging on how to develop this technical and soft skills. Collaborative learning and social cognitive theory were adopted as a theoretical foundation for this study as limited studies have been done to find out which frameworks has been consistent to determine students' computer programming experience using the Hackathon. This paper aim to evaluate the effectiveness of collaboration in a Hackathon environment to learn Computer Programming (CP) among IT students. The objectives of the study are: (i) to examine the influence of collaboration on students' CP skills (ii) to examine the influence of Hackathon on students' computer programming skills (iii) to study the statistical association between collaborative learning and Hackathon on students' CP skills. 80 students participated in this study through a survey method and the responses was analyzed using SPSS software. The results of the study indicate that students were satisfied with their collaborative learning experience and believed that the Hackathon approach will help them in developing computer programming technical and soft skill. This study develops a model and contributes to empirical studies on Hackathon as most studies in this field are based on anecdotal findings.