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Highlights

An instructional treatment for teaching novice Arduino users was developed, tested, refined, and found to be effective.

Abstract. This study employed the program evaluation model and self-efficacy theory to develop, evaluate, revise, and re-evaluate an instructional treatment (lesson and hands-on activity) intended to increase the interest, self-efficacy, and knowledge of novice Arduino users in two colleges of agriculture. Arduino is a line of programmable, open-source microcontrollers widely used in education and research. Program evaluation provides an iterative model of instructional development where the results of a pilot-test are used to guide refinement of instruction and materials which are reevaluated in subsequent test(s). Self-efficacy theory posits that positive mastery, vicarious, and social persuasion experiences lead to increased confidence in task performance and subject matter interest. In the pilot-test study at University A (n = 27), the initial instructional treatment resulted in significant (p < 0.05) and large increases in students‘ breadboarding self-efficacy and Arduino knowledge, but not in programming self-efficacy or interest in learning about Arduino. After revising the instructional treatment to include four hands-on tasks as part of the lesson, the re-test study at University B (n = 20) resulted in significant (p < 0.05) and large increases in students‘ interest in learning about Arduino, breadboarding self-efficacy, programming self-efficacy, and Arduino knowledge. The results of this study indicated the utility of program evaluation as a curriculum development model and the efficacy of incorporating small hands-on activities into lessons for novices learning new technical skills. Finally, use of self-efficacy theory as a framework for curriculum development was validated.