Learning with engaging activities via a mobile Python tutor

Abstract

This paper presents work on a new mobile Python tutor – PyKinetic. The tutor is designed to be used by novices, as a complement to traditional labs and lectures. PyKinetic currently contains one type of activity – Parsons problems, which require learners to re-order lines of code to produce a desired output. We present results of studies conducted to evaluate the usability and effectiveness of PyKinetic for learning. The enthusiasm from the participants was encouraging. We have also evaluated menu-based self-explanation prompts in PyKinetic. Results revealed that participants significantly improved their scores from pre- to post-test. Furthermore, participants who self-explained learned more than those who did not. We aim to develop more activities for PyKinetic to support code reading and code writing skills. We also plan to improve the tutor by providing engaging features to maximise learning, and to provide adaptive pedagogical support. Evaluation studies will also be conducted for future versions of PyKinetic.