Reducing Abstraction in High School Computer Science Education: The Case of Definition, Implementation, and Use of Abstract Data Types

The research presented in this article deals with the difficulties and mental processes involved in the definition, implementation, and use of abstract data types encountered by 12th grade advanced-level computer science students. Research findings are interpreted within the theoretical framework of reducing abstraction [Hazzan 1999]. The article describes the research setting and findings and concludes with some pedagogical implementations.

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