To read or to rotate? comparing the effects of technical reading training and spatial skills training on novice programming ability

Understanding how to best support and train novice programmers is a critical component of producing better and more diverse software engineers. In this paper, we present the results of a controlled 11-week longitudinal study with 57 CS1 students comparing two skill-based interventions to improve programming performance. The first intervention involves spatial training, an established baseline known to be helpful in engineering contexts. The second intervention is a novel CS-focused technical reading training.