Documentation of programs as a part of teacher development: The case of ScratchJr

Abstract

Given its simplicity, ScratchJr is a good block-based language to introduce schoolteachers into programming. However, when assessing teachers' mastery of ScratchJr programming, the IDE does not allow storing/loading program files, thus the teachers are required to explain, rather than submitting, their program. We present guidelines to explain (i.e., document) ScratchJr programs. The guidelines presented were inspired in the Block Model of program comprehension, adapted to the structure of ScratchJr programs and refined along several phases. A key phase was the evaluation of teachers' use of a first version of the documentation guidelines. Globally, teachers applied successfully the guidelines, but the analysis of their reports allowed us to identify several issues to revise and enhance. A second version of the guidelines, presented in the paper, was elaborated and validated by applying them to the same ScratchJr programs.