Jéan H. Greyling

Marking student programs using graph similarity

We present a novel approach to the automated marking of student programming assignments. Our technique quantifies the structural similarity between unmarked student submissions and marked solutions, and is the basis by which we assign marks. This is accomplished through an efficient novel graph similarity measure (AssignSim). Our experiments show good correlation of assigned marks with that of a human marker.

The effect of integrating an Iconic programming notation into CS1

Increasing pressure from national government to improve throughput at South African tertiary education institutions presents challenges to educators of CS1 courses. In response, educators must adopt effective methods and strategies that encourage students to be successful in such courses. An approach that seeks to increase and maintain satisfactory throughput is the modification of the teaching model in these courses by adjusting presentation techniques. This paper reports on a study into the effect of integrating an experimental iconic programming notation and associated development environment with existing conventional textual technological support in the teaching model of a CS1 course. The paper reports on the comparison of the performance achievement of students using only conventional textual technological support with that of students using the integrated iconic and conventional textual technological support. The findings suggest strong evidence that the performance achievement of students in a CS1 course improves significantly with the inclusion of iconic technological support in the teaching model. Considerably more students using the integrated form of technological support are in fact successful in the CS1 course when compared with their counterparts who use conventional textual technological support only.

B#: The Development and Assessment of an Iconic Programming Tool for Novice Programmers

The higher incidence of under-prepared students in the South African education institutions has a particular significance for introductory programming courses which rely heavily on the use of technological tools as components of the teaching model. Difficulties experienced by novice programmers in introductory programming courses include deficiencies in problem-solving strategies, misconceptions relating to programming language constructs and the use of traditional programming environments. An introductory programming course should offer students problem solving analysis and design experience as well as exposure to the basic ideas of algorithmic thinking. Generally, introductory programming courses tend to concentrate on the syntax of a programming language at the expense of developing problem solving skills. Coupled to this are the ever-increasing complexity of modern programming languages and the user interfaces of their IDEs. A strategy that addresses the difficulties experienced by novice programmers in introductory programming courses is one that modifies the teaching model, specifically within the context of technological support. One way of implementing this strategy is with the use of visual programming languages, of which the iconic flowchart approach is one. Further, iconic programming environments traditionally attempt to simplify the programming task by reducing the level of precision and manual typing usually required in the conventional textual programming languages. These environments also attempt to increase the speed at which problem-solving and implementation efforts occur. Consequently, B# was developed in order to provide an environment in which programs can be developed using iconic flowcharts. Basic programming concepts such as assignments, conditions, loops, inputs and outputs are supported. Automatic code generation, debugging and program execution is also supported by the system. This paper reports on the development of B#, focusing on insights that were obtained concerning iconic programming tools. The use of B# by novice programmers in an introductory programming course is discussed and assessed. Recommendations are made as to how an iconic programming environment like B# could contribute to the successful completion of an introductory programming course

Intrinsic Relations between Data Science, Big Data, Business Analytics and Datafication

Data recording and storage have evolved over the past decades from manual gathering of data by using simple writing materials to the automation of data collection. Data storage has evolved significantly in the past decades and today databases no longer suffice as the only medium for the storage and management of data. This is due to the emergence of the Big Data and Data Science concepts. Previous studies have indicated that the multiplication of processing power of computers and the availability of larger data storage at reduced cost are part of the catalysts for the volume and rate at which data is now made available and captured. In this paper, the concepts of Big Data, Data Science and Business Analytics are reviewed. This paper discusses datafication of different aspects of life as the fundamental concept behind the growth of Big Data and Data Science. A review of the characteristics and value of Big Data and Data Science suggests that these emerging concepts will bring a paradigm change to a number of areas. Big Data was described as the basis for Data Science and Business Analytics which are tools employed in Data Science. Because these fields are still developing, there are diverse opinions, especially on the definition of Data Science. This paper provides a revised definition of Data Science, based on the review of available literature and proposes a schematic representation of the concepts.

ICT career track awareness amongst ICT graduates

The Information and Communications Technology (ICT) industry is constantly evolving and new technologies are continuously being introduced. The new technologies create new ICT positions, such as Social Networking Manager, IT Architect, Knowledge Manager and Web Specialist. Existing job descriptions such as Systems Analyst, Project Manager and Programmer still exist. ICT graduates today can pursue a large range of ICT careers. The IS2010 ACM curriculum guidelines provide a range of Information Systems career tracks that students could pursue on completion of a specific degree program. ICT students graduating from tertiary institutions are generally not aware of the possible ICT career opportunities and career tracks available and are uninformed about the job descriptions of a computing professional. The research study conducted among Computer Science and Information Systems under-graduates and post-graduates indicated that the students were generally ignorant of possible ICT career tracks and opportunities available in industry. The study showed that there is a significant statistical difference between career knowledge students indicated they perceived they possessed and their actual career knowledge. Academics and students need to acquire a thorough knowledge of ICT career paths and career tracks. The paper suggests methods to educate and provide the relevant information on ICT career opportunities to new ICT graduates and educators.

Comparison of the effects of professional and pedagogical program development environments on novice programmers

The program development environment a novice programmer uses has been identified as having a significant impact on the outcome of the process of learning to program. Professional program development environments are developed specifically for professional programmers and are often utilised by educational institutions to teach novice programmers. Pedagogical program development environments have been created to assist novice programmers in the process of learning to program. An empirical experiment was conducted to compare a representative professional program development environment with a representative pedagogical program development environment to determine how novice programmers are affected by the program development environment utilised. It was found that low risk novice programmers benefited significantly in terms of academic performance, while high risk novice programmers benefited significantly in terms of programming behaviour by using a pedagogical program development environment. The results indicate that a significant improvement in programming behaviour does not imply a significant increase in academic performance as well.

A framework proposal for algorithm animation systems

The studying and teaching of the analysis of algorithmic concepts can prove to be complex for both students and educators in algorithm courses. Traditional instructional aids such as textbook illustrations and other visual aids are attempts to address this challenge. A number of algorithm animation systems have emerged to address the limitation inherent in these static visual aids. One limitation of current algorithm animation systems is their restricted flexibility in terms of the simple addition of non-resident functionality, especially algorithms. This paper presents the design of an extensible framework for algorithm animation systems. A brief discussion on the development of a prototype using sorting algorithms based on the framework demonstrates the feasibility of the proposed design.

CS and IS Alumni Post-Graduate Course and Supervision Perceptions

Stakeholders in academic departments at higher education institutions include faculty, alumni, advisory board members, current students and employers. Stakeholder analysis provides information that academic departments can utilise to evaluate their programme offerings, post-graduate supervision quality and programme relevance. This exploratory study focuses on CS&IS post-graduates’ (alumni) perceptions of their education experience in a CS&IS department. The study further focuses on post-graduate courses they studied, their relevance in industry and if the academic programme adequately prepared them for a career in the ICT industry. The supervision of their post-graduate research was further investigated as well as their overall university experience. The results of the study indicate that the Department of CS&IS provided the relevant courses for employment in the ICT industry at the specific time they completed their studies. This research could assist academic departments in acquiring alumni feedback on their academic experience at an institution and improve post-graduate supervision practices.

The accreditation of ICT degree programs in South Africa

The accreditation of academic programs in Computer Science, Information Systems, Information Technology and other related programs is increasing annually. Academic accreditation is a quality assurance mechanism for tertiary education. Accreditation ensures that a department or program meets a set of independently specified quality criteria and allows for articulation and course recognition by professional bodies and industry acceptance. International accreditation of academic programs is specifically important in developing countries, providing graduates entering the international job market an internationally recognised qualification. The Computer Society of South Africa (CSSA) and The South African Institute of Computer Scientists and Information Technologists (SAICSIT) provide individual professional accreditation and links with other professional bodies, such as IFIP. In South Africa there is no professional body accrediting ICT degree programs or disciplines. The accreditation of degree programs and the use of Industry Advisory Boards are seen as interventions that could assist in changing the perceptions of students pursuing ICT careers and departmental compliance to international academic standards. This paper examines the current state of degree programme and professional accreditation internationally. The results of an accreditation survey undertaken amongst all departments offering ICT related degree programs at tertiary institutions in South Africa are reported. The authors recommend that the CSSA and SAICSIT investigate the establishment of a South African Accreditation Authority that is associated with international ICT accreditation authorities. A South African accreditation authority will provide degree program accreditation and this will result in significant cost savings to departments.

An intelligent framework for mobile devices

The use of personal computing for internet access continues to grow and new applications and technologies continue to emerge. Mobile devices are starting to replace traditional computing devices (PCs and laptops) as client devices, and must support growing, changing and emerging applications and technologies. However, new developments give birth to new challenges. Mobile applications are not exempt from these challenges. The issues include lack of memory, processing capabilities and storage on a mobile device, the reliability of connections, lack of available bandwidth, and poor security for wireless and mobile networks. This paper investigates the issues related to mobile technology and proposes an intelligent framework to assist file transfers to and from mobile devices. This paper shows that applying the framework reduces the total communication overhead and memory footprint, and decreases the transfer times for files sent between a client (mobile device) and a server.