Computer Engineering Commons^™

Identifying Code Reading Strategies In Debugging Using Sta With A Tolerance Algorithm, Christine Lourrine S. Tablatin, Ma. Mercedes T. Rodrigo

Department of Information Systems & Computer Science Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to identify the common code reading strategies of the high and low performing students engaged in a debugging task. Using Scanpath Trend Analysis (STA) with a tolerance on eye tracking data, common scanpaths of high and low performing students were generated. The common scanpaths revealed differences in the code reading patterns and code reading strategies of high and low performing students. High performing students follow a bottom-up code reading strategy when debugging complex programs with logical and semantic errors. A top-down code reading strategy is employed when debugging programs with simple control structures, few …