English Language Learners in Computer Science Education
Yinchen Lei, Meghan Allen
Abstract
English-language universities are increasingly recruiting students who are English Language Learners (ELL), but in computer science little is known about whether or how their learning needs differ from native English speakers. Despite widespread efforts into broadening participation in computing, computer science education for ELL students who are learning computer science in English is relatively understudied. In this paper, we review the small but growing body of work in this area. We conducted a scoping review to identify 54 relevant publications and chart their commonalities. We then performed a qualitative analysis to identify meta- and sub-themes. The meta-themes include: studying what benefits or hinders ELL students, focusing on integrative language skills, and pedagogical and curricular approaches. Via this scoping review, we provide a summary and synthesis of the 54 publications and identify comprehensively-examined and emerging themes.