1. SIGNIFICANCE AND RELEVANCE OF
TOPIC
Our introductory programming class (CS1) course is the first in
a two-part programming sequence required of all information
technology majors at Georgia Gwinnett College (GGC).
Unfortunately, the pass rates for our CS1 course have been as
low as 58%. Literature shows that the introductory programming
course is often a difficult course for students [1, 2]; in fact, some
estimates show that 33% of students either drop or fail their first
programming course [3, 4]. Since an engaging context can
positively impact student performance and motivation [5], we
wanted to incorporate mobile application development into our
CS1 course.