Wilkie, John and Good, Judith (2017) Tica: an environment for exploring tangible vs. screen-based programming. 28th Annual Workshop of the Psychology of Programming Interest Group - PPIG 2017, Delft, The Netherlands, July 1 - 3, 2017. Published in: Church, Luke and Hermans, Felienne, (eds.) 28th Annual Workshop of the Psychology of Programming Interest Group - PPIG 2017 : Proceedings. 65-75. Psychology of Programming Interest Group

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Abstract

This paper describes Tica, an environment designed to explore the differences between tangible and screen based interfaces when teaching programming to children aged 5–7 years. Tica comprises several components: a tangible programming language and a screen based equivalent, an Android app to interpret the programming languages and record data, and a physical robot that can be programmed using either the tangible or screen-based language. Tica was designed using a learner-centred approach, with a specific focus on the needs and abilities of the target user group.
Once implemented, an initial pilot study was carried out with 14 adults. Although participants using the screen-based interface completed problems more quickly than those using the tangible interface, participants using the tangible interface reported a higher level of enjoyment. Next steps include a more extensive study with the target population as well as some refinements to the Tica environment.

Item Type:	Conference Proceedings
Schools and Departments:	School of Engineering and Informatics > Informatics
Research Centres and Groups:	Creative Technology
Depositing User:	Judith Good
Date Deposited:	08 Aug 2018 13:43
Last Modified:	07 Feb 2019 14:15
URI:	http://sro.sussex.ac.uk/id/eprint/77652

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