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Exploring the Interaction of Abstraction and Engagement in Learning Programming Concepts

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dc.date.accessioned 2020-05-20T09:47:36Z
dc.date.available 2020-05-20T09:47:36Z
dc.date.issued 2020-05-20
dc.identifier.uri http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/28533
dc.title Exploring the Interaction of Abstraction and Engagement in Learning Programming Concepts en
ethesis.discipline none und
ethesis.department none und
ethesis.faculty Matemaattis-luonnontieteellinen tiedekunta fi
ethesis.faculty Faculty of Science en
ethesis.faculty Matematisk-naturvetenskapliga fakulteten sv
ethesis.faculty.URI http://data.hulib.helsinki.fi/id/8d59209f-6614-4edd-9744-1ebdaf1d13ca
ethesis.university.URI http://data.hulib.helsinki.fi/id/50ae46d8-7ba9-4821-877c-c994c78b0d97
ethesis.university Helsingin yliopisto fi
ethesis.university University of Helsinki en
ethesis.university Helsingfors universitet sv
dct.creator Heinonen, Ava
dct.issued 2020
dct.language.ISO639-2 eng
dct.abstract The design of instructional material affects learning from it. Abstraction, or limiting details and presenting difficult concepts by linking them with familiar objects, can limit the burden to the working memory and make learning easier. The presence of visualizations and the level to which students can interact with them and modify them also referred to as engagement, can promote information processing. This thesis presents the results of a study using a 2x3 experimental design with abstraction level (high abstraction, low abstraction) and engagement level (no viewing, viewing, presenting) as the factors. The study consisted of two experiments with different topics: hash tables and multidimensional arrays. We analyzed the effect of these factors on instructional efficiency and learning gain, accounting for prior knowledge, and prior cognitive load. We observed that high abstraction conditions limited study cognitive load for all participants, but were particularly beneficial for participants with some prior knowledge on the topic they studied. We also observed that higher engagement levels benefit participants with no prior knowledge on the topic they studied, but not necessarily participants with some prior knowledge. Low cognitive load in the pre-test phase makes studying easier regardless of the instructional material, as does knowledge on the topic being studied. Our results indicate that the abstractions and engagement with learning materials need to be designed with the students and their knowledge levels in mind. However, further research is needed to assess the components in different abstraction levels that affect learning outcomes and why and how cognitive load in the pre-test phase affects cognitive load throughout studying and testing. en
dct.subject Computer science education
dct.subject Interactive learning environments
dct.subject E-learning
dct.language en
ethesis.isPublicationLicenseAccepted true
ethesis.language.URI http://data.hulib.helsinki.fi/id/languages/eng
ethesis.language English en
ethesis.language englanti fi
ethesis.language engelska sv
ethesis.thesistype pro gradu -tutkielmat fi
ethesis.thesistype master's thesis en
ethesis.thesistype pro gradu-avhandlingar sv
ethesis.thesistype.URI http://data.hulib.helsinki.fi/id/thesistypes/mastersthesis
dct.identifier.ethesis E-thesisID:68e4a4a1-2ca0-4324-a14b-c4d1883ec038
dct.identifier.urn URN:NBN:fi:hulib-202005202220
dc.type.dcmitype Text
ethesis.facultystudyline Hajautetut järjestelmät ja tietoliikenne fi
ethesis.facultystudyline Networking and Services en
ethesis.facultystudyline Distribuerade system och datakommunikation sv
ethesis.facultystudyline.URI http://data.hulib.helsinki.fi/id/SH50_084
ethesis.mastersdegreeprogram Tietojenkäsittelytieteen maisteriohjelma fi
ethesis.mastersdegreeprogram Master's Programme in Computer Science en
ethesis.mastersdegreeprogram Magisterprogrammet i datavetenskap sv
ethesis.mastersdegreeprogram.URI http://data.hulib.helsinki.fi/id/MH50_009

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