Using Tangible Manipulatives for Hands-on Activities in Undergraduate Computer Science Classes (Abstract Only)

Abstract

Hands-on activities can reinforce a variety of Computer Science concepts covered in class. Active learning techniques that utilize tangible manipulatives such as LEGO or other simple objects provide unique opportunities for students to explore or reinforce topics during class in a playful setting. This kinesthetic learning approach can also provide a platform that has a low learning curve, can facilitate creative thinking, improve student engagement with content and peers while adding gamification elements to the course. Different Computer Science topics lend themselves to such activities to differing degrees and the logistics of conducting these activities in large classrooms requires careful planning and execution, especially where cost is a factor and replication is desired between classes. Some educators may have experience while others may be interested but do not know where to start. BOF attendees will hear from those who have used different types of manipulatives, applied manipulatives to different Computer Science topics, and utilized said activities in different scenarios and contexts (e.g. large vs. small classes, single student vs. team activities). The sharing of ideas, strategies, and resources, as well as potential collaborations is also central to the discussion. The audience is expected to consist of both university faculty/lecturers (especially those who teach lower division courses) and high school teachers of computer science who are interested in engaging students in course content via kinesthetic activities and tangible manipulatives.

Full text

LEGO-based Active Learning Exercises for
Teaching Software Development
Stan Kurkovsky, Central Connecticut State University
Stephanie Ludi, University of North Texas
Contact: kurkovsky@ccsu.edu
LEGO is a construction toy familiar to many students. Creating
software, regardless of scale, is often similar to building with
tangible objects, such as houses or bridges--an analogy that is often
used in the classroom. In this workshop, we will show how to use
LEGO bricks as a surrogate representing the lines of code, software
objects, or other artifacts in the process of constructing software
systems. LEGO-based analogies and case studies enacted as hands-
on exercises for student teams help develop a better understanding
of the underlying concepts, while keeping students deeply engaged
in the course material.
This workshop is intended for faculty teaching undergraduate and
graduate courses focusing on software development, software
engineering, and related concepts. This workshop will also benefit
other educators looking for ways to supplement their courses with
engaging and playful hands-on activities aimed to strengthen the
teamwork, oral communication, problem solving, and design skills
of students.
We will practice several hands-on LEGO-based activities during
the workshop. Specific topics of these activities will include change
management and object-oriented interfaces, as well as activities
specific to the phases of software development. Workshop
participants will learn about other LEGO-based activities that focus
on a broad range of topics including requirements engineering,
architectural design, and software dependability. A laptop is not
required for this workshop. This work is supported in part by the
National Science Foundation Awards 1611905, 1709244 and a
2015 ACM SIGCSE Special Project grant. For more information
visit http://www.cs.ccsu.edu/~stan/sigcse2018/
Keywords: software development; active learning; LEGO
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1145/3159450.3162357