Andrew Petersen
Michelle Craig
Jennifer Campbell
Anya Tafliovich
ABSTRACT
This paper describes a qualitative study of the factors that contribute to a student's decision to withdraw from CS1. Individual interviews were held with 18 students in a majors-focused CS1 at a large, research-intensive North American university, and results both validate and extend previous work on the experience of students who struggle in introductory computer science. In particular, our analysis confirms the complexity of the decision to drop, with students citing a combination of interrelated factors that contribute to the decision. Lack of time, combined with ineffective study strategies or with a prioritization of other courses, were the most commonly cited combinations of factors. Interestingly, when compared to the experience of students who chose to complete the course, there is evidence that students encounter a decision point when they realize they are or soon will be behind. Students who drop speak of focusing on other priorities or being unable to catch up, while students who complete speak of understanding the need to use new techniques for learning and increasing their efforts.
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Index Terms
- Revisiting why students drop CS1
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