BlocklyPar: from sequential to parallel with block-based visual programming

This Innovative Practice Full Paper presents BlocklyPar, a set of three tutorial games to move from sequential to parallel programming using a block-based visual language. Block-based tutorial games are attractive tools for introducing programming to novices. A few of existing tools can express multiple tasks running at the same time, but none of them address parallel programming concepts and terms used in the field of parallel computing. Our tutorial games are targeted for first-year Computer Science students, as a resource to anticipate parallel computing using a self-taught approach with engaging challenges. The challenges involve university students' day-to-day tasks to make the games more meaningful for the audience, thus collaborating with the idea that everyday tasks can benefit from parallel approaches. The first game introduces the programming environment and the sequential blocks; the second introduces the concepts of tasks, resources allocation, and parallel task execution; and the third presents the concepts of computational load distribution and performance metrics for evaluating improvements in a parallel solution. The concepts are expressed through animation components and three new programming blocks. We have conducted preliminary tests with Computer Science students for evaluating the platform usage and parallel programming concepts assessed. The results suggest that the games contribute to the student's learning on parallelism as an extension of practicing sequential programming. It can also motivate students to design parallel solutions to explore today's multi-core and multiprocessor computers.