| Abstract: Learning to write a computer program can be very difficult for beginners at all ages, and even entering college students are diverse with respect to their computer skills – some are computer champions, while others may have rarely touched a computer. Although skill in computer programming is acknowledged to be valuable for information science students, educators in the discipline recognize that many students select management information systems and other academic majors to avoid or escape the programming demands of a computer science curriculum. In response to these challenges, the work reported in this presentation attempts to improve information technology instruction for college students, evidenced by progressive gains in their knowledge and self confidence, by combining the use of a programmed instruction tutoring system with interteaching as the initial components in a Java computer programming course. The synergistic relationships among programmed instruction, interteaching, and model-based lecturing will be described and demonstrated as they relate to the adoption of multi-media behavioral tactics having the goal of fostering and managing the transition of all students to a common level of mastery and generalizable skill.
Henry H. Emurian is an associate professor of information systems in the College of Engineering and Information Technology at UMBC. He is a licensed clinical psychologist in Maryland, and he also holds a graduate degree in computer science. His research and teaching interests focus primarily upon the applications of programmed instruction and interteaching to help students acquire skill and confidence in computer programming, in particular, and information technology, in general. He also maintains an interest in behavioral systems management of confined microsocieties for spaceflight applications through his affiliation with the Institutes for Behavior Resources, Inc. (IBR) in Baltimore. His work has appeared in Computers in Human Behavior, the International Journal of Information and Communication Technology Education, Information Resources Management Journal, Distance Education Technologies, the Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, the Behavior Analyst Today, and others. He is a member of the American Psychological Association, Eastern Psychological Association, and the Association for Behavior Analysis International. |