This paper describes a recent NSF funded project under the Research Initiation Grant in Engineering Education (RIGEE) program. It correlates the programming language study to second language acquisition theory. The work begun in Fall 2014, and project materials are under development. This paper outlines the proposed work and the materials developed to support the implementation of the project in Fall 2015.
IntroductionComputer programming is a common mandatory course taught in the first year of engineering and computer science programs. These types of courses typically utilize a common programming language (MATLAB, C, Java) to teach students about syntax, programming techniques, and introduce students to applied problem solving [1][2][3][4] . Learning a computer programming language has been known to be difficult for high-school and university students because of the lack of time for practice 5 , in addition to the conceptual complexity of the topic and logical reasoning processes required for understanding. Programming courses are critical to the learning needs of students in STEM majors, as they provide students with problem solving skills that are easily transferrable and contextually relevant to math and science courses in the curriculum. A student who is better prepared to understand and solve problems, regardless of the context, will be better prepared to persist throughout higher education.