Sofia.Micro: An Android-Based Pedagogical Microworld Framework

Abstract

Microworlds are visual, 2D grid-based worlds with programmable actors that help ease students into programming. Microworlds have been used as a pedagogical tool for teaching students to program in an object-oriented paradigm for several years now. With the popularity of Android smart phones, creating a pedagogical microworld for Android can help students learn not just Java, OO and event-driven concepts, but also learn to use the Android framework to create concrete, real-world applications. This thesis presents Sofia.Micro, an Android-based pedagogical microworld framework that not only allows Greenfoot-style microworld programs to run on Android, but also adds additional functionalities to microworlds that have not been previously explored, such as built-in shape and physics support, event-driven programming in a microworld context, and allowing for both Greenfoot-style actors and Karel-style actors in the same world.