A proposal of three extensions in blank element selection algorithm for Java programming learning assistant system

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (10) ◽

pp. 751-756

Author(s):

Htoo Htoo Sandi Kyaw ◽

◽

Nobuo Funabiki ◽

Wen-Chung Kao

Keyword(s):

Practical Problem ◽

String Matching ◽

Difficulty Level ◽

Selection Algorithm ◽

Web Based ◽

Java Programming ◽

Programming Skills ◽

Novice Students ◽

Element Selection

To enhance Java programming educations, we have proposed a Web-based Java Programming Learning Assistant System (JPLAS) that provides a variety of programming assignments to cover different learning levels. As fundamental programming exercises for novice students, JPLAS offers the Code Fill-in-blank Problem (CFP) and the Code Fixing Problem (CXP), to learn Java grammar and basic programming skills through code reading. A CFP instance requires filling in the blank elements in the problem code generated by applying the coding rule check function and the blank element selection algorithm. A CXP instance involves correcting the error elements made by the error injection algorithm. In both problems, all answers from the students will be marked through string matching with the stored correct one. In this paper, we propose the Code Amendment Problem (CAP) as a practical problem for learning the debugging process by combining CFP and CXP in JPLAS. As a mixture of CFP and CXP instances, a CAP instance is generated by randomly selecting either blank or error for each element with a given blank probability BP. For evaluations, we apply 12 CAP instances to 21 students in Japan and Myanmar, where the results show that BP = 50% offers the highest difficulty level, and CAP is harder than CFP and CXP.

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A Study of Element Fill-in-Blank Problems for C Programming Learning Assistant System

International Journal of Information and Education Technology ◽

10.18178/ijiet.2021.11.6.1520 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (6) ◽

pp. 255-261

Author(s):

Htoo Htoo Sandi Kyaw ◽

◽

Nobuo Funabiki ◽

Shune Lae Aung ◽

Nem Khan Dim ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Computer Architecture ◽

Programming Languages ◽

Data Structures ◽

Source Code ◽

Selection Algorithm ◽

Source Codes ◽

Java Programming ◽

C Programming ◽

Data Structures And Algorithms ◽

The Given

Nowadays, C programming is essential for university students to study various programming languages, algorithms, and computer architecture. Previously, we have developed Java programming learning assistant system (JPLAS) for studying Java programming. JPLAS provides several types of exercise problems to cover different study stages, including the element fill-in-blank problem (EFP). An EFP instance asks students to fill in the blank elements in the given source code. The correctness of the answer is marked through string matching. In this paper, we study the EFP for C programming learning assistant system (CPLAS), by extending our works for JPLAS. To automatically generate a feasible EFP instance, the graph-based blank element selection algorithm is newly designed and implemented for C programming. For evaluations, we generate 19 EFP instances using C source codes for basic grammar concepts, and fundamental data structures and algorithms, and assign them to 42 students in a Myanmar university. The solving results confirm the effectiveness of EFP in detecting the students who may have difficulty in studying C programming and the hard topics for them.

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A proposal of recommendation function for element fill-in-Blank problems in java programming learning assistant system

International Journal of Web Information Systems ◽

10.1108/ijwis-11-2020-0070 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽

Author(s):

Su Sandy Wint ◽

Nobuo Funabiki

Keyword(s):

Design Methodology ◽

Source Code ◽

Difficulty Level ◽

Selection Algorithm ◽

Web Based ◽

Content Type ◽

Java Programming ◽

Programming Skills ◽

Internet Connections ◽

Novice Students

Purpose To advance Java programming educations, the authors have developed a Web-based Java programming learning assistant system (JPLAS). It offers the element fill-in-blank problem (EFP) for novice students to study Java grammar and basic programming skills by filling in the missing elements in a source code. An EFP instance can be generated by selecting an appropriate code, and applying the blank element selection algorithm. As it is expected to cover broad grammar topics, a number of EFP instances have been generated. This paper aims to propose a recommendation function to guide a student solving the proper EFP instances among them. Design/methodology/approach This function considers the difficulty level of the EFP instance and the grammar topics that have been correctly answered by the student, and is implemented at the offline answering function of JPLAS using JavaScript so that students can use it even without the Internet connections. Findings To evaluate the effectiveness of the proposal, 85 EFP instances are prepared to cover various grammar topics, and are assigned to a total of 92 students in two universities in Myanmar and Indonesia to solve them using the recommendation function. Their solution results confirmed the effectiveness of the proposal. Originality/value The concept of the difficulty level for an EFP instance is newly defined for the proper recommendation, and the accuracy in terms of the average numbers of answer submission times among the students is verified.

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