IX. CONCLUSION
In this paper we have introduced a novel approach to
educating students in computer science based on combining
concepts taken from Pervasive interactive Programming, the
Internet-of-Things, the iCampus, Living Labs and a concept we
term the hierarchical ‘Smart-Box’ model. In doing these we
explained the technologies and principles involved. For
example we explained how these can be integrated into a
framework that we have labelled “The Cloud of Things” (CoT).
We have argued that the IoT will provide a highly motivating
environment for students to learn about Computer Science and
programming, as it encapsulates all the key features and issues
of modern computing, but wrapped into a flexible and highly
motivating application. Moreover, we have discussed how this
fits with the current education and technology trends. In order
to make this model function effectively, some formidable
obstacles need to be overcome. For example, an IoT system is
essentially a distributed computer system, which historically
have proven difficult to programme. Thus, using this
framework to teach programming, especially to introduce
novices to programming, is potentially difficult. To overcome
this we introduced an end-user programing paradigm that we
have developed called Pervasive interactive Programming
(PiP) and evaluated it with 18 participants. These evaluations
have demonstrated that students and staff with diverse
backgrounds (including non-programmers) were quickly able
to master the skills and understand the concepts involved. Thus
we argue that our methods show some good potential for
introducing students (especially pre-university level students)
to programming in a way that is simple, motivating and eases
their path to programming with more regular high-level
languages by introducing them to the core program constructs,
namely conditional rules. Finally, we proposed a hierarchical
smart-box based approach to decomposing the real world into
discrete spaces that range from desk-top units to entire
buildings or campuses. The desktop units represent a
particularly cost effective solution for teaching large numbers
of students as it fits easier with the academic needs and budgets
of educational establishments. The work has involved a
number of threads, each with significant research potential that
we hope to explore as part of future work.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
We are grateful to partners at Harlow UTC for their support
in this project, in particular Sue Young (Project Manager) and
Sam Stevens (Architect). Also, a special acknowledgment goes
to Professor Marcian Cirstea and Professor Mike Cole for their
helpful advice and encouragement.