Program a Hit -- Using Music as Motivator for Introducing Programming Concepts

Abstract

People with no prior experience or a low self-efficacy in computing are less likely to choose Computer Science (CS) as a study subject. This especially has an impact on young women and is therefore one of the reasons for the prevalent gender imbalance in CS student populations. We designed a workshop that addresses this issue and uses music as motivating context. It introduces a variety of essential programming concepts in a fun and engaging way and results in creative artifacts programmed by the participants. First experiences show that this approach leads to promising results and might therefore contribute in the longer term to a more diverse CS student population.