Comparing Outcomes Across Different Contexts in CS1

Bruce A. Maxwell, Stephanie R. Taylor

Abstract: Context-based CS1 courses focusing on Media Computation, Robotics, Games, or Art have been shown to improve outcomes such as retention and gender balance, both important factors in CS education. Colby College has offered a Visual Media focused CS1 course since 2008, and in response to faculty and student feedback, we expanded our curriculum to include a second context-based CS1 course focused on Science applications. Our goal was to have completely different projects but teach the same fundamental concepts. In order to measure whether students in each version were learning the same concepts, and to reduce confounding factors, the same professors co-taught both versions of CS1 and students completed the same homework, quizzes, and final exam. Our analysis of the quiz, final exam, and final overall performance showed no statistically significant difference by context or by gender. There was also no difference by context or gender in whether students took additional CS courses in the following two semesters. Furthermore, as a percentage of the students eligible to take the next offering of CS2, Data Structures and Algorithms, 48% of the students in these two offerings of CS1 registered for CS2, with no significant difference between contexts. Our conclusion is that we were successful in achieving similar outcomes, and the benefits of context-based CS1 courses, in both the Visual Media and Science versions of the course.