Which programming language should follow Scratch? JavaScript?

Mateja Bevčič (2017) Which programming language should follow Scratch? JavaScript?. MSc thesis.

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Abstract

Pupils start with Scratch programming already in the second triennium of primary school. Scratch is a visual programming language where users learn basic programming by stacking blocks of commands. The problems then arise when switching to text-based programming as this represents a great and demanding step for pupils. It is for this very reason very important which programming language and environment we select as we try to make this step as easy as possible for pupils. Python is often used as the first text-based language in Slovenia and also around the world. »The problem« of Python is that it is not very visual so we feel it is not suitable for primary school pupils; especially not as the first language that follows Scratch. In the master’s thesis we tried to find out how appropriate JavaScript is in combination with HTML and CSS for this. By conducting lessons at the primary school in Ljubljana we examined the pupils’ motivation and understanding. We found out that the transition to text-based programming is quite difficult, especially for those pupils who do not know Scratch because they lack the basics of computer science most easily adopted in Scratch. We also learned that it is really important that pupils immediately see what a certain part of the code does, as this helps them to understand it. For this reason we believe that JavaScript is appropriate for teaching in primary schools because we can compile a number of such tasks for it.

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