miscon:programming.execution.computer-infers-intent · draft · trust low · v0.1.1 · kind misapplied-analogy

The computer fills in what you meant

The computer understands the purpose of the program and fills in steps that were left out, so a program does what you meant as long as the intention is clear.

Stable URI
https://open-misconceptions.github.io/miscon-data/m/programming.execution.computer-infers-intent
UUID
0b67ef75-97f2-4e35-8de8-058b5a78261b
Domain
programming.execution
Level band
primary, middle, secondary, undergraduate
Locale
en
About
https://open-misconceptions.github.io/miscon-data/c/programming.execution.literal-interpretation (Miscon)

Evidence patterns

Pattern 0: predict the output of a program with a missing step

predicts the intended output rather than the literal one

Itemnumbers = [3, 1, 2] print(numbers) # print sorted
Expected[3, 1, 2]
Response[1, 2, 3]

Discriminators

vs a slip. Consistent across items and the learner appeals to what the program is 'for'. A slip is a single misread.

vs programming.variables.names-meaningful-to-machine. The variable-name case is a special case; test with an item where the intention is stated only in a comment.

Relations

conflicts_with
The machine does exactly what the code says (external)
resolved_by
The machine does exactly what the code says (external)
Statements run one at a time in order (external)

Provenance

Origin: llm-drafted

  1. Pea, R. D. (1986). Language-independent conceptual "bugs" in novice programming. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 2(1), 25-36. doi:10.2190/689T-1R2A-X4W4-29J2
    Intentionality and egocentrism bugs.
  2. Sorva, J. (2012). Visual Program Simulation in Introductory Programming Education (Doctoral dissertation, Aalto University). Appendix A catalogues introductory programming misconceptions from the literature. link
  3. Qian, Y., & Lehman, J. (2017). Students' misconceptions and other difficulties in introductory programming: A literature review. ACM Transactions on Computing Education, 18(1), Article 1. doi:10.1145/3077618

Drafted from the cited literature for the Open Misconceptions seed pack; statement, examples and discriminators are original text. Awaiting maintainer review.

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Cite

miscon:programming.execution.computer-infers-intent
https://open-misconceptions.github.io/miscon-data/m/programming.execution.computer-infers-intent