Getting Experience in Computer Science Education - Guide to Teaching Computer Science: An Activity-Based Approach - page 240

• A procedure is a subprogram.
• A procedure helps us think simpler, because each procedure is a small task,
a subtask, and if the task is complicated, it is divided into subtasks.
• We should understand the syntax of procedures, how they are called and
where in the program they are written.
• A procedure within a procedure: Indeed, it is not always necessary, but
such an option exists.
• Oh! There are too many questions that I haven't thought about before.
• There is also recursion.
After that conversation, Anna taught the lesson. During the lesson she ad-
dressed the topic of procedures from different perspectives. After the lesson,
in the reflection meeting, Anna said:
At the end, I had about 15 min left and I still had to talk about what a pro-
cedure gives us in general—hierarchy. But I did not prepare myself for this
and I had no idea how to do it. It is not a simple task to explain why we need
hierarchy and even now I do not know how to find an example for this topic.
In general, it is funny that at the beginning I thought that there is nothing to
do with procedures, I thought that a quarter of an hour would be sufficient [to
teach procedures] and that we would then continue with types of parameters.
• Stage B: Scenario analysis, work in pairs and a discussion
After the scenario is presented to the students (either orally or in writing),
they are asked to work in pairs on the following questions:
1. What is the source of Anna's initial conception that the notion of procedure
can be taught in about 15 min?
2. Can you imagine a scenario that took place during the lesson that Anna
taught which gave her a hint that more time is needed for the teaching of
the notion of procedure?
3. What questions, in your opinion, were raised by the high school pupils in
that lesson? For each question, describe what would be your answer as a
teacher.
4. Which additional aspects of the procedure concept, in your opinion, should
be addressed while teaching this topic?
5. Suggest an example that illustrates the notion of hierarchy, for which it was
difficult for Anna to find an appropriate example in the lesson.
After the students work on these questions, a discussion takes place in which
their suggestions are discussed. In this discussion, it is important to address
both pedagogical aspects (mainly, teaching methods and class management
issues) and cognitive topics (mainly, students' understandings and (mis)con-
ceptions). Question 3, for example, in which the students are asked to envision