A Theory-Centric Real-Time Assessment of Programming

The instructional design of many introductory programming courses in computer science do not include introduction to programming styles. In most cases, these courses offer an introduction to syntax constructs of the programming language as a means to translate problem statements to program design and how to handle a compiler. Notably, students are offered only summative feedback on their code. Skill development in programming is an evolutionary process. Skilled programmers exhibit expertise in contextualizing language constructs, design issues, efficient debugging, standards requirements, best practices, coding resources, and ability to successfully collaborate with colleagues. We propose a pedagogical mechanism to guide students through a formative process and present empirical evidence in support of a real-time and theory-centric assessment and feedback of styles of programming.