FIGURE 2 - uploaded by Geoffrey Herman
Content may be subject to copyright.
Source publication
In introductory undergraduate courses on digital systems, students have difficulty understanding the state concept. We expect that students have subtle, persistent misconceptions about state because it is an abstract concept and has nuanced meanings in different disciplines as well as colloquial English. To learn how students conceive of state in d...
Contexts in source publication
Context 1
... the second round of interviews, we tried a different approach to identify student misconceptions about state. We created simple sequential circuits (Figure 2) and asked seven students to "fill-in-the blanks" on related timing diagrams. ...
Context 2
... Figure 2, because the states of the flip-flops and how they affect z are unknown, students should decide that the blank (the "?") is unknown. Nevertheless, most apparently assumed that the circuit was combinational, because they determined z would be 1 from 20 to 25 ns because z was 1 when x and y were both previously 1. ...
Similar publications
This paper focuses upon the design of neural network to produce good solution to multiple-valued logic circuits. The theoretical basis for applying neural networks to multiple-valued logic algebra called neuro-algebra is proposed. This research also studies the design of a single artificial neural network model for half adders of binary, ternary, q...
The large subthreshold leakage current of static CMOS logic circuits designed in modern nanometer-scale technologies is one of the main barriers for implementing ultra-low power digital systems. Subthreshold source-coupled logic (STSCL) circuits are based on an NMOS differential pair that is switching a constant tail bias current between the two ou...
The Programmable Analogue and Digital Array (PAnDA) is a novel reconfigurable architecture, which allows variability aware design and rapid prototyping of digital systems. Exploiting the configuration options of the architecture allows the post-fabrication correction and optimisation of circuits directly in hardware using bio-inspired techniques. I...
Citations
... In continuation of the difficulties in understanding the concept of state, students were interviewed: they were asked to define the term state transition and the phrase "leaving each state" [16]. Some students mentioned that a state transition is a change of state. ...
... In CS, many studies identified students' misconceptions in areas outside data structures, including operating systems [25], computer architecture [26], discrete mathematics [27], digital logic [28,29], and algorithms [30,31,32,33,34]. Other studies focused on students' misconceptions of advanced topics in data structures, such as heaps, binary trees, and hash tables [2,4,3]. ...
... There were various methods for identifying misconceptions, which included analysis of 1) exam papers with think-aloud interviews from the instructor and/or students' [27,30,2,3], 2) general interviews with students [29], 3) think-aloud interviews with students [28,32,33] 4) the combination of think-aloud interviews and a pilot of the Concept Inventory (CI) with students [35], and 5) final exam study sessions [6]. In this research study, we examined students' misunderstandings about the basic concepts of linked lists using semi-structured think-aloud interviews asking students to verbally define these concepts, as well as implement them. ...
... In CS, CIs were developed for discrete mathematics [27], digital logic [28,29], and data structure topics related to heaps and binary search trees [2,39], and more recently, there was a CI developed for basic data structures including lists, trees, stacks, and sets with a heavy emphasis on lists and trees [40]. While there is a need to develop a comprehensive CI for linked lists in general and specific to languages, there is a lack of qualitative studies revealing student conceptual and procedural misunderstandings about linked lists to create such inventories. ...
Since linked lists serve as a bridge to understanding more advanced data structures, we believe that it is critical to identify students’ misunderstandings early. We found that students had a good conceptual understanding of how to insert and delete nodes in a singly linked list in C. However, many students continued to struggle with C syntax, pointer manipulation, and memory management needed to correctly implement singly linked lists. Students reported that the abstract nature of pointers, relating linked lists to the real world, and prior knowledge about dynamic arrays contributed the most to their difficulties with linked lists in C.
... In CS, many studies identify students' misconceptions in areas outside data structures, including operating systems [20], computer architecture [21], discrete mathematics [22], digital logic [23], [24], and algorithms [25]- [29]. Other studies focus on students' misconceptions of advanced topics in data structures, such as heaps, binary trees, and hash tables [2]- [4]. ...
... In order to assess students' understanding in four main topics of digital logic (State and sequential circuits, Number representations, MSI components, and Boolean logic), we relied on the Digital Logic Concept Inventory (DLCI) (Herman, 2011;Herman & Handzik, 2010;Herman, Zilles, & Loui, 2014;Herman et al., 2008Herman et al., , 2009Herman et al., , 2012, which is composed of multiple-choice questions (items). This concept inventory was designed to assess students' understanding of Digital Logic. ...
In line with the growing interest in extending the diversity of CS students, we examined the performance of a unique group of students studying an introductory course in Digital logic: ultraorthodox Jewish men, whose previous education was based mostly on studying Talmud and who lacked a conventional high-school education. We used questions from the Digital Logic Concept Inventory . We compared the results to those of religious Jewish men with a conventional high-school education, and to the results reported in the literature. The ultraorthodox group performed better than the other groups in tasks that concerned number representation. No other statistically significant differences were found. Talk-aloud protocols revealed that the ultraorthodox students utilized a viable conceptual understanding in their performance. We can conclude that students’ unique, alternative prior education should not be merely viewed as an obstacle to their academic studies, but also as a potential source for strengths.
... C28-Amortized analysis 6(6-8) 8(7-9) C29-NP-Completeness 6|7(5-8) 10 (9)(10) to or exceeding both the overall importance and difficulty medians of all the concepts. Our initial ROI included: C2, C11, C12, C13, C16, C17, C19, C20, C21, C24, and C26. ...
... Previous studies on identifying misconceptions within CS have focused on programming [12], object oriented programming [11], operating systems [21], and digital logic [7,9]. Little attention has so far been paid to misconceptions related to analyzing a problem structure and solution [4]. ...
We present initial results from our work towards developing a concept inventory for algorithm analysis (AACI) at the post-CS2 level. We used a Delphi process to identify a list of algorithm analysis topics that were considered both important and hard by surveying a panel of experienced instructors. Through a similar survey process, we identified a list of student misconceptions related to the identified topics. Based on this, a set of pilot AACI items were developed. We validated the misconceptions list by analyzing student responses to four administrations of the pilot AACI in two different universities during Fall 2015 and Spring 2016. Results revealed that a sufficient number of students held most of the misconceptions identified in the list.
... Authors of the Digital Logic Concept Inventory (DLCI) (Herman, 2011;Herman, Loui, Kaczmarczyk, & Zilles, 2012;Herman, Loui, & Zilles, 2010bHerman, Zilles, & Loui, 2009;Longino, 2006;Zilles, Longino, & Loui, 2006) established topics through a Delphi process (Goldman et al., 2008) that ascertained important concepts through a panel of instructors. The authors examined student misconceptions through interviews, the results of which informed the number of items per concept and the distractors for each question. ...
Concept Inventories (CIs) are assessments designed to measure student learning of core concepts. CIs have become well known for their major impact on pedagogical techniques in other sciences, especially physics. Presently, there are no widely used, validated CIs for computer science. However, considerable groundwork has been performed in the form of identifying core concepts, analyzing student misconceptions, and developing CI assessment questions. Although much of the work has been focused on CS1 and a CI has been developed for digital logic, some preliminary work on CIs is underway for other courses. This literature review examines CI work in other STEM disciplines, discusses the preliminary development of CIs in computer science, and outlines related research in computer science education that contributes to CI development.
... The next section presents a brief introduction to the Flowthing Model as it is utilized in diverse areas such as software specification [12], power systems [13], and communications [14]. We then discuss case studies modeled in FSM and also in FM to illustrate the behavior and attributes of the same system represented in both models. ...
Embedded systems involve a coupling of hardware and software. Modeling of an embedded system is a key step in the requirements phase, when a product's specifications are gathered and modeled. This paper focuses on the specification and modeling phase (the requirements phase) in systems that have been modeled using the FSM approach. The concept of state has been a central notion in this development. While FSM has many diverse and unique properties, the notion is not rich enough to capture complex systems, especially embedded systems with software and hardware parts. The concept of state raises misconceptions, especially in education. To provide an alternative to FSM for system description, this paper introduces a new model as the foundation for a new approach to modeling applications that need state-like methodology. The methodology is based on identifying "things that flow" (e.g., data, numbers, signals) and specifies their streams of flow in terms of no more than six generic stages. The resulting conceptual picture provides a map of diverse flow systems that trigger each other. In this paper, study cases that originally used FSM are re-diagrammed using the new methodology to compare the semantics reflected in each method. Such semantics can be used to understand the behavior of a given system in design and educational contexts. The results point to the viability of the flow-based method for capturing the specification and modeling of systems.
... This study comprises just one portion of a larger study of students' misconceptions that were used to create the digital logic concept inventory (DLCI) [Herman et al. 2009[Herman et al. , 2012[Herman et al. , 2011a[Herman et al. , 2011c. A concept inventory (CI) is a multiple-choice test that reliably measures students' conceptual understanding. ...
The ability to reason with formal logic is a foundational skill for computer scientists and computer engineers that scaffolds the abilities to design, debug, and optimize. By interviewing students about their understanding of propositional logic and their ability to translate from English specifications to Boolean expressions, we characterized common misconceptions and novice problem-solving processes of students who had recently completed a digital logic design class. We present these results and discuss their implications for instruction and the development of pedagogical assessment tools known as concept inventories.
... Boolean operators (NAND and NOR) 10 Two's complement representation* 11 ...
... In our misconceptions research to develop the DLCI [9], [10], we have found that students try to apply information encoding schemes in different ways in different contexts. When encoding circuit state information in flip-flops, many students wrongfully believe that adding one flip-flop to a circuit allows the circuit to enter one more state (linear relationship) rather than doubling the number of states that the circuit can enter (exponential relationship). ...
Digital logic instructors have created a myriad of new, innovative teaching methods. Comparing the effectiveness of these methods is elusive because of differences in topic coverage and assessment content. We have created a standardized assessment tool to provide a means to directly compare student conceptual learning in different digital logic design courses - the Digital Logic Concept Inventory (DLCI). We have used the DLCI along with instructor interviews and analysis of student final exams to compare student learning in two courses at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. These courses differed in course content, teaching philosophy, and pedagogical technology. We provide evidence that the DLCI can provide useful insight into what techniques and methods improve student learning.
... Given the relative strengths of the novice-centric and expert-centric techniques, we chose to focus first on expert-centric techniques such as the Delphi process. After identifying the most important concepts for each topic, we conducted followup studies to verify the difficulty ratings obtained in this study Herman et al. 2009;Kaczmarczyk et al. 2010]. In accordance with the literature, we are finding that the experts generally know what is difficult for students, but that they occasionally underestimate the difficulty of some topics. ...
... The ratings and comments of our experts are now being used to inform the identification of misconceptions for our concept inventory creation process (see Sec. 2). We are currently researching student misconceptions in translation tasks from English to Boolean statements ], state concepts [Herman et al. 2009], medium scale integration components, and number representations and have created a preliminary version of the CI ]. ...
... If nothing else can be learned from the Force Concept Inventory, the FCI showed that many teachers have an incomplete (at best) understanding of student learning. As such, in the next step of our concept inventory development, we are checking the difficulty ratings asserted by our experts through student interviews Herman et al. 2009;Kaczmarczyk et al. 2010]. In these interviews, we are finding that some topics that our experts ranked as easy are rife with student misconceptions. ...
A concept inventory is a standardized assessment tool intended to evaluate a student’s understanding of the core concepts of a topic. In order to create a concept inventory it is necessary to accurately identify these core concepts. A Delphi process is a structured multi-step process that uses a group of experts to achieve a consensus opinion. We present the results of three Delphi processes to identify topics that are important and difficult in each of three introductory computing subjects: discrete mathematics, programming fundamentals, and logic design. The topic rankings can not only be used to guide the coverage of concept inventories, but can also be used by instructors to identify what topics merit special attention.
