This chapter aims to present and summarize a variety of research areas that directly or indirectly have influenced Computer Science Education Research, particularly associated to the teaching and learning of programming. It is known that many students encounter a lot of difficulties in introductory programming courses. Possible reasons for these difficulties are discussed and some existing proposals in the literature are presented. Based on this discussion, the chapter also includes a description of work done at the University of Coimbra, trying to define more adequate pedagogical strategies for introductory programming courses. The results obtained and their implementation in a common undergraduate course are presented and discussed. The authors conclude that this new strategy makes learning more stimulating for the students, minimizes dropout intentions, and makes the students learn more and better. The chapter ends with suggestions of future research opportunities within the topic of teaching and learning of programming.
Where is Computer Science Education Research Happening?
