{"id":1030,"date":"2026-09-09T10:31:04","date_gmt":"2026-09-09T17:31:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/?page_id=1030"},"modified":"2026-09-14T13:50:52","modified_gmt":"2026-09-14T20:50:52","slug":"cof","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/cof\/","title":{"rendered":"Coding Forward\/SLAC"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"PDq2pG_selectionAnchorContainer\" data-start=\"249\" data-end=\"535\">This is the philosophy of the undergraduate tutoring and leadership program I run for ECS 32A. Students who learned to code in the course have an opportunity to <em data-start=\"436\" data-end=\"453\">code it forward<\/em>\u2014returning to help the next generation of students succeed as peer educators. They are the cornerstone of Stay Late and Code nights. Since 2021, the program has attracted a talented and diverse cohort of students from many majors and produced 102 alumni tutors.<\/p>\n<p class=\"PDq2pG_selectionAnchorContainer\" data-start=\"249\" data-end=\"535\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-1120\" src=\"https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2026\/09\/ChatGPT-Image-Sep-9-2026-10_28_35-AM-e1788975347782-1024x212.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"166\" srcset=\"https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2026\/09\/ChatGPT-Image-Sep-9-2026-10_28_35-AM-e1788975347782-1024x212.png 1024w, https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2026\/09\/ChatGPT-Image-Sep-9-2026-10_28_35-AM-e1788975347782-300x62.png 300w, https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2026\/09\/ChatGPT-Image-Sep-9-2026-10_28_35-AM-e1788975347782-768x159.png 768w, https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2026\/09\/ChatGPT-Image-Sep-9-2026-10_28_35-AM-e1788975347782-1536x318.png 1536w, https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2026\/09\/ChatGPT-Image-Sep-9-2026-10_28_35-AM-e1788975347782-2048x424.png 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"537\" data-end=\"1227\">In ECS 32A: Introduction to Programming, a team of undergraduate Learning Assistants (LAs, also known as tutors) helps make this large-enrollment course more supportive, collaborative, and accessible, particularly for students whose primary field is outside computer science. Successful former ECS 32A students are invited to apply to the Learning Assistant Program and return as peer educators, receiving course credit through ECS 197T. LAs support <strong data-start=\"1000\" data-end=\"1029\">Stay Late and Code (SLAC)<\/strong> sessions, where they help students develop programming, problem-solving, and debugging skills. At the same time, LAs gain valuable experience in teaching, communication, leadership, and mentorship.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1229\" data-end=\"1989\">The Learning Assistant model is an evidence-based approach to supporting active learning in large undergraduate STEM courses. Studies of Learning Assistant programs report benefits in learning, persistence, and students&#8217; confidence in their ability to succeed in challenging STEM coursework. For introductory programming, this approach provides students with frequent opportunities to practice coding, ask questions, work through problems with experienced peers, and develop confidence that programming is a skill they can learn through practice. Published research across STEM disciplines shows that undergraduate peers change what a large course can do.<\/p>\n<ul class=\"cif-benefits\">\n<li><strong><span class=\"cif-tagline\">Fewer students fail or withdraw <\/span><\/strong><span class=\"cif-refs\">(Alzen et al. 2018; Bundy et al. 2025)<\/span><\/li>\n<li><strong><span class=\"cif-tagline\">Deeper learning, not just better grades<\/span> <\/strong>(Sellami et al. 2018<span class=\"cif-refs\">)<\/span><\/li>\n<li><strong><span class=\"cif-tagline\">A stronger sense of belonging in STEM<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong>(Clements et al. 2022)<\/li>\n<li><strong><span class=\"cif-tagline\">Gains reach every group of students <\/span><\/strong><span class=\"cif-refs\">(<\/span><span class=\"cif-refs\">Bundy et al. 2025;<\/span><span class=\"cif-refs\">\u00a0Sellami et al. 2018<\/span><span class=\"cif-refs\">)<\/span><\/li>\n<li><strong><span class=\"cif-tagline\">One on one help that scales to a large class <\/span><\/strong><span class=\"cif-refs\">(<\/span><span class=\"cif-refs\">Barrasso et al. 2021<\/span><span class=\"cif-refs\">, Forbes et al. 2017)<\/span><\/li>\n<li><strong><span class=\"cif-tagline\">Better odds of finishing the degree <\/span><\/strong><span class=\"cif-refs\">(Feng et al 2025)<\/span><\/li>\n<li><strong><span class=\"cif-tagline\">Tutors grow too<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0<span class=\"cif-refs\">(<\/span><span class=\"cif-refs\">Breland et al. 2023<\/span><span class=\"cif-refs\">)<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-start=\"1229\" data-end=\"1989\">\n<p data-start=\"1229\" data-end=\"1989\"><strong>Majors Represented by Alumni Tutors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1229\" data-end=\"1989\">A total of 102 students have served as Learning Assistants across 218 quarters of service. Nearly half (47%) return for a second term, while over a quarter (28%) serve for three or more terms. Their majors weighted by quarters of service are represented in the word cloud below.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1132 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2026\/09\/learning-assistant-majors-word-cloud-1-1024x626.png\" alt=\"Majors Represented by 102 Alumni Tutors\" width=\"800\" height=\"489\" srcset=\"https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2026\/09\/learning-assistant-majors-word-cloud-1-1024x626.png 1024w, https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2026\/09\/learning-assistant-majors-word-cloud-1-300x183.png 300w, https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2026\/09\/learning-assistant-majors-word-cloud-1-768x469.png 768w, https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2026\/09\/learning-assistant-majors-word-cloud-1-1536x939.png 1536w, https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/88\/2026\/09\/learning-assistant-majors-word-cloud-1.png 1800w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1991\" data-end=\"2005\"><strong data-start=\"1991\" data-end=\"2005\">References<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Alzen, J. L., Langdon, L. S., &amp; Otero, V. K. (2018). A logistic regression investigation of the relationship between the Learning Assistant model and failure rates in introductory STEM courses. <em>International Journal of STEM Education, 5<\/em>(1), 56.<\/p>\n<p>Barrasso, A. P., &amp; Spilios, K. E. (2021). A scoping review of literature assessing the impact of the learning assistant model. <em>International Journal of STEM Education, 8<\/em>, 12.<\/p>\n<p>Breland, H., Clark, C., Shaked, S., &amp; Paquette-Smith, M. (2023). The benefits of participating in a learning assistant program on the metacognitive awareness and motivation of learning assistants. <em>CBE\u2014Life Sciences Education, 22<\/em>(3).<\/p>\n<p>Bundy, C. G., &amp; Wong, T. E. (2025). Analyzing Learning Assistant influence on STEM student success using logistic and hierarchical regression. <em>Contemporary Mathematics and Science Education.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Clements, T.P. et al. (2022). \u201cIt made me feel like a bigger part of the STEM community\u201d: Incorporation of Learning Assistants enhances students\u2019 sense of belonging in a large introductory biology course. <em>CBE\u2014Life Sciences Education.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Feng, L., Close, E. W., Luxford, C. J., et al. (2025). Transforming undergraduate STEM education: The Learning Assistant model and student retention and graduation rates. <em>Research in Higher Education, 66<\/em>, 4.<\/p>\n<p>Forbes, J., Malan, D. J., Pon-Barry, H., Reges, S., &amp; Sahami, M. (2017). Scaling introductory courses using undergraduate teaching assistants. <em>Proceedings of the 2017 ACM SIGCSE Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education<\/em>, 657\u2013658.<\/p>\n<p>Sellami, N., Shaked, S., Laski, F. A., Eagan, K. M., &amp; Sanders, E. R. (2017). Implementation of a learning assistant program improves student performance on higher-order assessments. <em>CBE\u2014Life Sciences Education, 16<\/em>(4).<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This is the philosophy of the undergraduate tutoring and leadership program I run for ECS 32A. Students who learned to code in the course have an opportunity to code it forward\u2014returning to help the next generation of students succeed as peer educators. They are the cornerstone of Stay Late and Code nights. Since 2021, the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1030","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1030","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/84"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1030"}],"version-history":[{"count":26,"href":"https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1030\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1170,"href":"https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1030\/revisions\/1170"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/faculty.engineering.ucdavis.edu\/stevens\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1030"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}