Data Analysis of University Curricula

As a part of this research, 129 programming modules from 35 German universities were selected to analyze the programming competencies expected in introductory programming higher education. All of these modules are part of the first or second year of computer science study programs. In this chapter, the qualitative content analysis of the gathered curricula data is the main focus. Hence the data analysis method is introduced. The data had to be pre-processed before the qualitative analysis, so the linguistic smoothing of the competency-based learning objectives is presented along with the basic coding guidelines and the use of computer-assisted analysis tools. Moreover, the development of deductive and inductive categories for cognitive competencies and other competency components is illustrated. Then the quality criteria for the conducted analysis are summarized.