Abstract
Methodology for collecting and analyzing on-line protocols from novice programmers is described. On-line protocols are copies of all syntactically correct programs that students have written using an interactive computer system. Since the number of on-line protocols collected is quite large, we have developed a computer program, called the Bug Finder, which can auto-matically identify semantic and pragmatic bugs in subjects’ programs. In this paper, we describe the theory upon which the Bug Finder is built and provide an example of the Bug Finder in operation.
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Teitelbaum, T., & Reps, T.The Cornell program synthesizer: A syntax-directed programming environment (Tech. Rep. 80-421). Ithaca, N.Y: Cornell University, Department of Computer Science, 1980.
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This work was supported by the Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences, under ARI Grant MDA903-80-C-0508, and by the National Science Foundation, under NSF Grant SED-81-12403. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Government.
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Bonar, J., Ehrlich, K., Soloway, E. et al. Collecting and analyzing on-line protocols from novice programmers. Behavior Research Methods & Instrumentation 14, 203–209 (1982). https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03202154
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.3758/BF03202154