Attendance has shown to have a positive effect on student performance in numerous disciplines. However, very few studies have focused on how attendance influences the learning of programming in the U.S. higher education system. This paper examines the relationship between attendance and student performance in introductory programming courses. Data were collected from 103 students from nine class sessions of introductory programming classes taught at University X by two instructors in the department of Computer Science in the first and second semesters during the 2014/2015 academic year. The statistical analyses showed a significant positive correlation between attendance and student programming performance beyond other factors. Thus, encouraging attendance is recommended to educators as a pedagogical strategy.
['Wen Chin Hsu', 'Scott W. Plunkett']
Attendance and grades in learning programming classes