Computational Thinking and Programming in Early Childhood Education
A special issue of Education Sciences (ISSN 2227-7102). This special issue belongs to the section "Early Childhood Education".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 January 2026 | Viewed by 4220
Special Issue Editors
2. NICA—Interdisciplinary Center for Children and Adolescents, University of the Azores, 9500-321 Ponta Delgada, Portugal
3. CIE—Education Research Center, ISPA—University Institute, 1149-041 Lisboa, Portugal
Interests: computational thinking; educational robotics; early childhood education; literacies
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
2. LE@D—Laboratory of Distance Education and eLearning, Universidade Aberta, 1269-001 Lisboa, Portugal
3. Guest Researcher at the Centre for Research in Education, University of Minho, 4704-553 Braga, Portugal
Interests: computational thinking; programming and educational robotics in early childhood and primary education; teacher training; technologies in education; distance learning
2. LE@D—Laboratory of Distance Education and eLearning, Universidade Aberta, 1269-001 Lisboa, Portugal
3. NICA—Interdisciplinary Center for Children and Adolescents, University of the Azores, 9500-321 Ponta Delgada, Portugal
Interests: computational thinking; educational robotics; digital teaching skills; online education; inclusive education
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Early Childhood Education is a particularly rich and important period in children's development and learning. In an increasingly digital and technological society, enabling children to understand and approach the use of technology from an early age is an important step towards building future citizens who are critical, creative, and prepared for the challenges of the 21st century.
In this sense, computational thinking and programming seem to be essential pillars for this education, as they foster the development of multiple and transversal skills, such as solving problems in a logical and structured way or stimulating creativity and innovation, among many other relevant cognitive and socio-emotional processes.
Computational thinking and programming, which often go hand in hand because of their goals and objectives, are fundamental competences not only for the best use of the digital and technological world, but also for everyday life, helping children to approach challenges in an organized, thoughtful, and efficient way.
Moreover, by including the development of these skills in the curriculum of early childhood education, we will also be contributing, from a very early age, to the creation of equal opportunities, ensuring that all children, regardless of their socio-economic background, have access to the tools they need to thrive in a digital world, as well as contributing to a fairer and more developed society.
In this sense, this Special Issue of Education Sciences invites you to submit original research articles and reviews, as well as other manuscript types, that present good practices and research in computational thinking and programming, including educational robotics, related to early childhood education, covering various educational, pedagogical, social, cultural, and/or political aspects.
Dr. Ana Isabel Santos
Dr. Maribel Santos Miranda-Pinto
Dr. Ana Claudia Loureiro
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Education Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- early childhood education
- computational thinking
- programming
- educational robotics
- teacher practices
- teacher training
- educational experiences
- learning environments
- pedagogical approaches
- programming and robotics in special educational needs
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