  Novice programmers face numerous barriers while attempting to learn how to
code that may deter them from pursuing a computer science degree or career in
software development. In this work, we propose a tool concept to address the
particularly challenging barrier of novice programmers holding misconceptions
about how their code behaves. Specifically, the concept involves an inquisitive
code editor that: (1) identifies misconceptions by periodically prompting the
novice programmer with questions about their program's behavior, (2) corrects
the misconceptions by generating explanations based on the program's actual
behavior, and (3) prevents further misconceptions by inserting test code and
utilizing other educational resources. We have implemented portions of the
concept as plugins for the Atom code editor and conducted informal surveys with
students and instructors. Next steps include deploying the tool prototype to
students enrolled in introductory programming courses.
