A Program Complexity Metric Based on Variable Usage for Algorithmic Thinking Education of Novice Learners

We have explored educational methods for algorithmic thinking for novices and implemented a block programming editor and a simple learning management system. In this paper, we propose a program/algorithm complexity metric specified for novice learners. This metric is based on the variable usage in arithmetic and relational formulas in learner's algorithms. To evaluate the applicability of this metric for novice education, we discuss the differences between three previous program complexity metrics and our proposed metric. [For the full proceedings, see ED562093.]