Evaluating a game-development approach to teach introductory programming concepts in Secondary Education

Abstract

Owing to the development of multimedia and computer technologies, many scholars have attempted to employ digital learning content to improve students' learning motivation and learning achievement in CS courses. In this pedagogical design, students interact and create their own content related to curricular areas with several advantages, such as motivation, fun, commitment, and enthusiasm, showing improvements related to computational thinking and computational practices. The purpose of the present study is to evaluate the combined use of App Inventor and a game-development approach in school lessons, as an example of constructionist learning in an introductory programming course for novices. This study was conducted in a public secondary school in Greece. It used a quasi-experimental control group design. The results of the study showed that the combined use of App Inventor programming environment and a game development approach has a positive effect on students' basic programming skills achievements and motivation in a CS course.