Designing Bugs or Doing Another Project: Effects on Secondary Students' Self-Beliefs in Computer Science

TL;DR

This study explores how a collaborative, design-focused debugging intervention in an introductory computing course influences middle school students' self-beliefs, motivation, and attitudes towards computer science, especially in marginalized populations.

Contribution

It introduces the Debugging by Design (DbD) intervention, demonstrating its positive effects on self-efficacy and motivation compared to traditional open-ended projects.

Findings

Project completion increased self-efficacy and creative expression.

DbD uniquely boosted fascination with design and growth mindset.

Comparison classes showed reduced anxiety and problem-solving beliefs.

Abstract

Debugging, finding and fixing bugs in code, is a heterogeneous process that shapes novice learners' self-beliefs and motivation in computing. Our Debugging by Design intervention (DbD) provocatively puts students in control over bugs by having them collaborate on designing creative buggy projects during an electronic textiles unit in an introductory computing course. We implemented DbD virtually in eight classrooms with two teachers in public schools with historically marginalized populations, using a quasi-experimental design. Data from this study included post-activity results from a validated survey instrument (N=144). For all students, project completion correlated with increased computer science creative expression and e-textiles coding self-efficacy. In the comparison classes, project completion correlated with reduced programming anxiety, problem-solving competency beliefs, and programming self-concept. In DbD classes, project completion is uniquely correlated with increased fascination with design and programming growth mindset. In the discussion, we consider the relative benefits of DbD versus other open-ended projects.