Extreme Apprenticeship Meets

Operating Systems

Gabriella Doderounibz

Bolzano, 27 november 2015

Summary

● Extreme Apprenticeship principles● Extreme Apprenticeship & Operating Systems,

2012-2014 ● 2015 and beyond ?

Motivation● Computer Science is a subject being taught at high

schools and at University, in specialized programs or just to increase digital literacy within other programs

● Many students have difficulties !!!● Low grades, drop-outs, low retention (students forget

about it and cannot apply knowledge)● „labs“ are foreseen, if they are indeed available,

possibly after a theoretical course has already „taught“ what to do in the lab

● Can we improve on that?

Extreme Apprenticeship

● Based on Cognitive Apprenticeship: focus on the learning process, rather than on learning content

● Learning as apprentices from a „master craftsman“● Traditional examples are craftsmen (tailor, cobbler....)

teaching practical skills, but also artists● Cognitive skills can be learned as well ● Learning process in three steps:

● modeling, scaffolding, fading.

Modeling

● The apprentice acquires a model of the activity by observing the master at work !

● Lectures (if any) are based on worked examples, thinking aloud ...

● Lectures can be greatly reduced in number – possibly avoided altogether

scaffolding

● Apprentices work on proposed topics in presence of the master, asking help if needed.

● The master does not provide solutions, just „hints“ to find a solution on their own

● Bruner's idea of scaffolding

fading

● As soon as the apprentice gains autonomy, scaffolding decreases gradually

● The more apprentices work on their own, the more their skills increase

XA and exercises

● Exercises are NOT „applied theory“ ● According to Roumani

● We think of them as teaching instruments that complement lectures by teaching the same material but in an exploratory fashion

● Exercises are indispensable to increase students motivation

XA and motivation

● Intrinsic motivation better than extrinsic motivation● Difficult exercises kill intrinsic motivation of weaker

students ● Motivation increases if exercises become „challenges“

and represent short-term, reachable objectives ● feedback from the master increases motivation ● Self-esteem and self-efficacy increase motivation

Basic XA principles

(1) Learning by doing. A skill is acquired by practicing it, as long as needed

(2) Continuous bi-directional feedback. The apprentice receives a feedback about his work, the master receives a feedback by observing how the apprentice is overcoming challenges

Bolzano: Operating Systems

● 3. semester of BSc, 30 students/year (increased to 50 in 2015)

● Assessment: theory (50%) written exam; lab (50%) project● Half of the lab was offered as XA activity from 2011 till

2013● Contents : bash scripting (very technical !!)

Pre-self assessment

Blended XA & Moodle

● Impossible to give real-time feedback in the lab (teacher is alone!)

● Feedback is given on a Moodle platform ● Moodle is indispensable to manage feedback and

grading(54 exercises x 30 students + corrections to exercises...)

Our experience 2011-2013

● XA is effective, both in presence (Helsinki) and blended (Bolzano)

● Students work more, and are happy about it● Students respect deadlines, and are aware of what

they learn ● No more drop-outs

Post-self assessment ● 1: Self efficacy ● 2: Exercises helped

to understand theory● 3: I invested too much

time in exercises

… where is the fun of it?● The speedy gonzales prize: the „best“ students

started to compete about „who finishes soonest“ (and delivers correct exercises!) since 2011; weekly since 2013

● Difficulty coefficient of exercises, based on past grades -- since 2013

● The „Giro d'Italia“ metaphor: climbers (i.e. Quicker on difficult exercises); Chrono?? – since 2016

● Plus the usual stuff like progression bar and leaderboards – since 2016

The future 2015-2016● E3osvideos: youtube channel with „open

educational resources“ on Linux and bash● Offering e3osmooc in march-april 2016

● OS 2015-16: new investigation on „emotions“ in parallel with a programming course (Verona)

Fig. 5. A video screen-shot showing: (1) the teacher-avatar addressing the learning goal, (2) with a discovery element for engaging, (3) the iconic representation of a terminal and folders for favoring recognition rather recall

Credits

● RAGE webpage:http://www.cs.helsinki.fi/en/rage/● OS teachers: F.Di Cerbo, N.El Ioini, V.Del Fatto, F.Persia● Co-authors of various papers: the above + R.Gennari,

F.Ravanelli, N. Mastachi, and a dozen schoolteachers of CS in high schools

● Collaboration: Universita' di Verona (psychology)● Invited talks : Genova, Padova, Catania, Verona

Grazie, Danke, Thanks, Kiitos!!gdodero @ unibz . it