Learning SQL in steps

Learning SQL is a common problem for many Computer Science (CS) students, the steps involved are quite different to those mastered when learning procedural or object-oriented programming languages. The introduction of commercial products that include shortcuts into the learning environment can initially appear to benefit the student, however, transferring these skills to a textual environment can be difficult for many students. Computer Science students are required to build textual SQL queries because the demands of complex queries can quickly out grow the capabilities of graphical query builders available in many software packages. SQL in Steps (SiS) is a graphical user interface centred around the textual translation of a query; this combination of a GUI and a clear representation of its textual meaning has the potential to improve the way in which users gain an understanding of SQL. SiS allows for an incremental and evolutionary development of queries by enabling students to build queries step by step until their goal is reached. A planned evaluation of SiS hopes to quantify the extent to which the introduction of such a user interface into the learning environment can improve the students’ understanding of the language.