DEVCLASS: AN APP TO IMPROVE PROGRAMMING TEACHING

One of the subjects which is considered the most difficult by computer science students, is programming. This course is often too complex for most students, since it requires a lot of practice, and sometimes they don’t have the time or computer equipment necessary to cover all the curriculum presented.

Nowadays mobile devices are a fundamental part of our lives, and also for students. We can not ignore the fact that these devices invade the classroom at all times, and this doesn’t have to be a negative aspect for education. If cell phones are becoming indispensable for students, why not also use them as a tool in education?

DEVCLASS is an application that reinforce the learning of programming inside the classroom. It allows the teacher and student share relevant information of the subject, and perform various practices that are usually done on a computer from a mobile device.

The instructor can activate preconfigured programming exercises to be made during class, then review them at that very moment and make observations for each student. It is also possible scheduling activities and place a small summary of the topic, this with the purpose that both the student and the teacher are aware of the tasks to be performed.

Some of the features that students can consult DEVCLASS are the curriculum of the subject, summaries of the topics covered in class, upload activities to the cloud, observe the evaluations corresponding to the assessments defined by the facilitator and lead precise control of assistance and topics covered in class.

This paper aims to show how the use of mobile technology, specifically the DEVCLASS app in a classroom at the Computer Science Faculty of Mazatlán, at the Autonomous University of Sinaloa improved the teaching of the programming course.