Understanding Wikipedia as a resource for opportunistic learning of computing concepts

• Main Authors: ROBILLARD, Martin P., TREUDE, Christoph
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2020
• Subjects: Computing concepts; Self-regulated learning; Wikipedia; Software Engineering
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/sis_research/8878; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/context/sis_research/article/9881/viewcontent/wikipedia.pdf
• Institution: Singapore Management University

Posts on on-line forums where programmers look for information often include links to Wikipedia when it can be assumed the reader will not be familiar with the linked terms. A Wikipedia article will thus often be the first exposure to a new computing concept for a novice programmer. We conducted an exploratory study with 18 novice programmers by asking them to read a Wikipedia article on a common computing concept that was new to them, while using the think-aloud protocol. We performed a qualitative analysis of the session transcripts to better understand the experience of the novice programmer learning a new computing concept using Wikipedia. We elicited five themes that capture this experience: Concept Confusion, Need for Examples, New Terminology, Trivia Clutter, and Unfamiliar Notation. We conclude that Wikipedia is not well suited as a resource for the opportunistic learning of new computing concepts, and we recommend adapting information sharing practices in on-line programmer communities to better account for the learning needs of the users.