The analysis and application of an educational programming language (RUR-PLE) for a pre-introductory computer science course

Abstract

An educational programming language (EPL) allows a novice programmer to program quickly and easily by reducing the difficulty of programming in terms of programming education. The selection of a programming language, considering the students' cognitive level and the purpose of learning programming, is regarded as a key factor to increase the effectiveness of programming education. In this study, we derived the EPL selection criteria for pre-introductory computer science using the Delphi method of a 20-expert panels. Also, we selected RUR-PLE, a Python based programming learning environment, based on EPL selection criteria chosen through the Delphi method and applied the selected EPL to 26 students (20 males and 6 females) who participate in programming class to verify its usability. The objective of this study is to improve the possibility of selecting an appropriate EPL for novice programmers, considering the students' characteristics and the transition of programming knowledge from the EPL to a general-purpose programming language.