Uma abordagem para criação de instrumentos pedagógicos no contexto do ensino de programação para pessoas neurodivergentes.

Abstract

This study is an Educational Design Research that aims to promote the inclusion of neurodiverse students in programming education, providing means for the inclusion of these students in introductory programming classes. To this end, programming teachers were provided with an educational artifact that is inclusive of neurodiverse students. To achieve this goal, this doctoral thesis focuses on the following research questions (RQ): RQ1 - What possible impacts can cognitive disabilities have on the skills involved in teaching programming? RQ2 - What perception of difficulties do neurodiverse students and teachers face in the context of introductory programming? and, RQ3 - How can programming education be made inclusive for neurodivergent people? To this end, we conducted studies to identify the impacts that cognitive disabilities can have on the skills needed to program and investigate the perceptions of neurodiverse teachers and students in introductory programming classes. Finally, we conducted research to develop the artifact. The proposed artifact was built in the form of a guide so that introductory programming teachers can make their classes inclusive to neurodiverse audiences. The guide contains guidelines for adapting theoretical courses, exercises, and assessments. In addition, it presents models for creating lesson plans and scripts designed for this target audience. The Delphi method was used to validate this artifact through evaluation by expert judges. In addition, we conducted a study with neurodiverse students to validate the artifacts, taking the student’s point of view. In view of the above, the thesis described here has as its main contribution the proposal of an educational artifact for the construction of introductory programming classes inclusive to students with cognitive disabilities or neurodiverse individuals. This artifact emerges as a practical solution so that teachers can make their classes more inclusive to favor these students’ learning. To generate an artifact that was actually viable for teacher use, a careful validation was carried out, including programming teachers in the process, in addition to Pedagogy professionals who support students with disabilities. In view of this, this research aimed to provide neurodiverse students with equal opportunities to learn to program, especially when it comes to introductory programming, a subject that is so important for them to advance in a Computer Science course, whether as a mid-level technician or graduate and to be successful in the course.