Student and Lecturer Perceptions of Usability of the Virtual Programming Lab Module for Moodle

Teaching introductory computer programming and choosing the proper tools and programming languages are challenging tasks. Most of the existing tools are not fully integrated into systems to support the teaching-learning processes. The present paper describes the usability evaluation of the Virtual P...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Informatics in education 2021, Vol.20 (2), p.297-315
Main Authors: Ramos, Vinicius F. C, Cechinel, Cristian, Magé, Larissa, Lemos, Robson
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Automation
Computer Interfaces
Computer programming
Computer science
Computer Science Education
Core curriculum
design and evaluation methods
Distance learning
Education
Feedback
Foreign Countries
Human-Computer Interaction (HCI)
ICT Information and Communications Technologies
Integrated Learning Systems
Interfaces
Introductory Courses
Learning management systems
Learning Modules
Low level
Modules
moodle
Plagiarism
Programming
Programming languages
Public Colleges
Software
Student Satisfaction
Students
Teacher Attitudes
Teaching
Undergraduate Students
Undergraduate study
Usability
usability evaluation
User satisfaction
Virtual Classrooms
Virtual Programming Lab (VPL)
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Summary:Teaching introductory computer programming and choosing the proper tools and programming languages are challenging tasks. Most of the existing tools are not fully integrated into systems to support the teaching-learning processes. The present paper describes the usability evaluation of the Virtual Programming Lab module for Moodle (VPL-Moodle) based on a satisfaction questionnaire answered by 37 undergraduate students enrolled in CS1 and CS2 courses and 7 lecturers. Moreover, a heuristic evaluation performed by two specialists is also presented. Results of the descriptive and inferential analysis revealed mainly two things: a) the VPL-Moodle has a low level of usability in all five aspects analyzed by the students: satisfaction, efficiency, learnability, helpfulness, and environment control; and b) lecturers found some difficulties using the VPL-Moodle. A number of suggestions for the improvement of the VPL-Moodle interface are provided based on the findings of the paper.
ISSN:1648-5831
2335-8971
DOI:10.15388/infedu.2021.14