NotesFAQContact Us
Collection
Advanced
Search Tips
Back to results
Peer reviewed Peer reviewed
Direct linkDirect link
ERIC Number: EJ898870
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2010-Aug
Pages: 22
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1946-6226
EISSN: N/A
Algorithm Visualization: The State of the Field
Shaffer, Clifford A.; Cooper, Matthew L.; Alon, Alexander Joel D.; Akbar, Monika; Stewart, Michael; Ponce, Sean; Edwards, Stephen H.
ACM Transactions on Computing Education, v10 n3 Article 9 Aug 2010
We present findings regarding the state of the field of Algorithm Visualization (AV) based on our analysis of a collection of over 500 AVs. We examine how AVs are distributed among topics, who created them and when, their overall quality, and how they are disseminated. There does exist a cadre of good AVs and active developers. Unfortunately, we found that many AVs are of low quality, and coverage is skewed toward a few easier topics. This can make it hard for instructors to locate what they need. There are no effective repositories of AVs currently available, which puts many AVs at risk for being lost to the community over time. Thus, the field appears in need of improvement in disseminating materials, propagating known best practices, and informing developers about topic coverage. These concerns could be mitigated by building community and improving communication among AV users and developers. (Contains 4 tables, 1 figure, and 1 footnote.)
Association for Computing Machinery. 2 Penn Plaza Suite 701, New York, NY 10121. Tel: 800-342-6626; Tel: 212-626-0500; Fax: 212-944-1318; e-mail: acmhelp@acm.org; Web site: http://www.acm.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A