WIP: Exploring the Value of a Debugging Cheat Sheet and Mini Lecture in Improving Undergraduate Debugging Skills and Mindset

TL;DR

This study investigates the impact of a debugging mini-lecture and cheat sheet on third-year electrical engineering students' debugging skills and mindset, showing promising improvements in speed and perception despite limited statistical significance.

Contribution

It introduces a microelectronics debugging intervention using a mini-lecture and cheat sheet, providing preliminary evidence of their potential to enhance debugging skills and mindset.

Findings

Experimental group was faster by 1:43 on average

Experimental group had a 7% higher success rate

Students' debugging mindset shifted towards greater value perception

Abstract

This work-in-progress research paper explores the efficacy of a small-scale microelectronics debugging education intervention utilizing quasi-experimental design in an introductory microelectronics course for third-year electrical and computer engineering (ECE) students. In the first semester of research, the experimental group attended a debugging "mini lecture" covering two common sources of circuit error and received a debugging cheat sheet with recommendations for testing and hypothesis formation. Across three debugging problems, students in the experimental group were faster by an average of 1:43 and had a 7 percent higher success rate than the control group. Both groups demonstrated a strong general growth mindset while the experimental group also displayed a shift in their debugging mindset by perceiving a greater value towards debugging. Though these differences are not yet statistically significant, the pilot results indicate that a mini-lecture and debugging cheat sheet are steps in the right direction toward improving students' readiness for debugging in the workplace.