Browsing by Author "Techapalokul, Peeratham"

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    Automated Identification and Application of Code Refactoring in Scratch to Promote the Culture Quality from the Ground up
    Techapalokul, Peeratham (Virginia Tech, 2020-06-04)
    Much of software engineering research and practice is concerned with improving software quality. While enormous prior efforts have focused on improving the quality of programs, this dissertation instead provides the means to educate the next generation of programmers who care deeply about software quality. If they embrace the culture of quality, these programmers would be positioned to drastically improve the quality of the software ecosystem. This dissertation describes novel methodologies, techniques, and tools for introducing novice programmers to software quality and its systematic improvement. This research builds on the success of Scratch, a popular novice-oriented block-based programming language, to support the learning of code quality and its improvement. This dissertation improves the understanding of quality problems of novice programmers, creates analysis and quality improvement technologies, and develops instructional approaches for teaching quality improvement. The contributions of this dissertation are as follows. (1) We identify twelve code smells endemic to Scratch, show their prevalence in a large representative codebase, and demonstrate how they hinder project reuse and communal learning. (2) We introduce four new refactorings for Scratch, develop an infrastructure to support them in the Scratch programming environment, and evaluate their effectiveness for the target audience. (3) We study the impact of introducing code quality concepts alongside the fundamentals of programming with and without automated refactoring support. Our findings confirm that it is not only feasible but also advantageous to promote the culture of quality from the ground up. The contributions of this dissertation can benefit both novice programmers and introductory computing educators.
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    Understanding Recurring Software Quality Problems of Novice Programmers
    Techapalokul, Peeratham; Tilevich, Eli (Department of Computer Science, Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University, 2017-07-12)
    It remains unclear when is the right time to introduce software quality into the computing curriculum. Introductory students often cannot afford to also worry about software quality, while advanced students may have been groomed into undisciplined development practices already. To be able to answer these questions, educators need strong quantitative evidence about the persistence of software quality problems in programs written by novice programmers. This technical report presents a comprehensive study of software quality in programs written by novice programmers. By leveraging the patterns of recurring quality problems, known as code smells, we analyze a longitudinal dataset of more than 100 novice Scratch programmers and close to 3,000 of their programs. Even after gaining proficiency, students continue to introduce certain quality problems into their programs, suggesting the need for educational interventions. Given the importance of software quality for modern society, computing educators should teach quality-promoting practices alongside the core computing concepts.