Search Results (12)

Computational thinking (CT), an interrelation of skills and practices, is a crucial competency that empowers individuals to tackle logical problems, enabling them to overcome various challenges in their daily lives. To help Deaf students (those with hearing loss and using sign language for communication) enhance their CT, a STEAM learning program using a physical computing tool is proposed. The learning program composes four courses: learning concepts, implementing concepts, finding solutions to real problems and developing innovations. The program engaged Deaf students from 18 Deaf schools. It is geared towards boosting students’ CT and facilitating their capacity to devise technology-based solutions. The program measured students’ CT effectiveness based on the CT framework: concepts, practices, and perspectives. The measurement encompassed multiple-choice assessments for CT concepts, task rubrics for CT practices, and interview and invention observations for CT perspectives. The program concludes with participating in a science project competition, using a physical computing tool, called KidBright, to solve real-world issues by integrating science, mathematics, and art. After completing the learning program, Deaf students demonstrated an improved understanding of CT concepts, performing high-level CT practices, and expressing strong CT perspectives. These indicate that a STEAM learning program utilizing a physical computing tool can help Deaf students enhance their computational thinking. Full article

The rapid integration of computational thinking (CT) into STEM education highlights its importance as a critical skill for problem-solving in the digital age, equipping students with the cognitive tools needed to address complex challenges systematically. This study evaluates CT skills among Engineering and Computer Science students using a multi-method approach by combining quantitative methods (CTT scores and CTS responses) with qualitative methods (thematic analysis of open-ended questions), integrating objective assessments, self-perception scales, and qualitative insights. The Computational Thinking Test (CTT) measures proficiency in core CT sub-competencies, abstraction, decomposition, algorithmic thinking, and pattern recognition through objective tests. The Computational Thinking Scale (CTS) captures students’ perceived CT skills. At the same time, open-ended questions elicit perspectives on the practical applications of CT in academic and professional contexts. Data from 196 students across two Mexican universities were analyzed through quantitative and thematic methods. The results show that students excel in pattern recognition and abstraction but face decomposition and algorithmic thinking challenges. Cross-sectional analyses were conducted between CTT, CTS and the open-ended part to compare CT skills across different demographic groups (e.g., age, gender, academic disciplines), showing clear differences based on age, gender, and academic disciplines, with Computer Science students performing better than engineering students. These findings highlight the importance of CT in preparing students for modern challenges and provide a foundation for improving teaching methods and integrating these skills into university programs. Full article

Computational thinking (CT) can be developed in a multitude of ways. Well-known examples are plugged-in and unplugged applications that focus primarily on the (combined) usage of visual, textual, or tangible modalities. Less obvious are applications where CT development can be established via an auditory modality, to which the importance of creativity is attributed. When reasoning from such a different contextual perspective, it is interesting to investigate whether the self-creation of electronic music influences CT development and what added value can be attributed to creativity. Therefore, a mixed-methods study was conducted on primary school pupils aged 10 to 13 using FL-Studio Mobile^© music-producing software. Quantitative data were obtained using a pre-test–post-test assessment administered via a validated Computational Thinking Test (CTt). Qualitative data were obtained by conducting interviews to ascertain identifiable effects on CT sub-characteristics to determine the influence of creativity and creative thinking and children’s perceptions in this regard. Our results indicate that applying music-making software has measurable effects on CT development, particularly with respect to invoking and using auditory modalities. Notable findings were identified on the CT sub-characteristics “loops”, “conditionals”, “functions”, “nesting”, and “CT tasks required”. Our study shows that producing music using technology stimulates creativity, which seems to be an important parameter for CT development. Differences between girls and boys were observable. Further research on the interaction between CT and creativity, combining different modalities, is recommended. Full article

This study investigates the potential of a voice-controlled collaborative robot to promote computational thinking (CT) skills in preschoolers aged 4 to 6 in Southern Chile. During a week-long workshop, 34 children engaged in activities designed to develop several CT components while interacting with a robotic arm. Pre- and post-workshop assessments utilizing the TechCheck-K tool revealed significant improvements in CT skills. The findings of this preliminary study demonstrate the effectiveness of voice-controlled robots as innovative tools in early education, significantly enhancing young learners’ understanding of CT concepts, practices, and perspectives. This research advocates for further exploration of robotic integration in educational settings, highlighting their potential to improve or extend preschool learning environments and foster CT skill development. Full article

Clinical problem solving evolves in parallel with advances in technology and discoveries in the medical field. However, it always reverts to basic cognitive processes involved in critical thinking, such as hypothetical–deductive reasoning, pattern recognition, and compilation models. When dealing with cases of acute abdominal pain, clinicians should employ all available tools that allow them to rapidly refine their analysis for a definitive diagnosis. Therefore, we propose a standardized method for the quick assessment of abdominopelvic computed tomography as a supplement to the traditional clinical reasoning process. This narrative review explores the cognitive basis of errors in reading imaging. It explains the practical use of attenuation values, contrast phases, and windowing for non-radiologists and details a multistep protocol for finding radiological cues during CT reading and interpretation. This systematic approach describes the salient features and technical tools needed to ascertain the causality between clinical patterns and abdominopelvic changes visible on CT scans from a surgeon’s perspective. It comprises 16 sections that should be read successively and that cover the entire abdominopelvic region. Each section details specific radiological signs and provides clear explanations for targeted searches, as well as anatomical and technical hints. Reliance on imaging in clinical problem solving does not make a decision dichotomous nor does it guarantee success in diagnostic endeavors. However, it contributes exact information for supporting the clinical assessments even in the most subtle and intricate conditions. Full article

Computational Thinking (CT) pervasively shares its methods, practices, and dispositions across other disciplines as a new way of thinking about problem-solving. Few studies have been carried out studying CT from an Information Systems (IS) perspective. This study elaborates on how systems thinking (ST), an acknowledged theory in the IS field, bonds to CT to address some well-known common issues related to CT such as reductionism and dogmatism, and to supplement the computing nature of CT with behavioral and societal facets involved in its implications. We studied how ST is applied to CT research in the literature. To do so, two primary approaches have been identified that link ST and CT. First, ST is embedded in CT practices meaning that ST is considered as a component of CT. Second, ST and CT are parallelly studied, and ST is considered as a supplementary concept to CT. Correspondingly, we propose a complementary approach that looks at CT from the ST lenses to provide a clearer picture of CT in an educational context. Moreover, we expect this new perspective can help to broaden the development of educational CT concepts and scenarios by including new notions such as framework, interpretation, norms, paradigm, and context. Full article

This work aimed to analyze the concept of a balance scorecard (BSC) tool integrated with computational thinking (CT) in university education. An experiential approach to learning about the CT through the study of a BSC performance evaluation tool has been reported. The BSC project offers students hands-on experience with the team-based, cross-functional, and strategic aspects of conceptual thinking. This study integrates the four aspects of the BSC into CT to evaluate students through four perspectives. The experiential approach requires each student to compose a team, find information about their motivation, and develop BSC concepts that apply learning performance in a computational thinking course. The conclusion suggests that the BSC project had a positive impact on the students who participated, indicating their overall knowledge and understanding of functional areas and relationships within the teamwork cooperation were enhanced. Our paper reports an experiential method of learning CT by studying BSC performance evaluation tools. The application example can enhance students’ logical thinking, what is indispensable and essential in maintaining competitiveness. Full article

In this study, the authors constructed structural equation models in order to determine the relationship between students’ learning attitudes and their computational thinking perspectives and programming empowerment. The purpose is to understand students’ perceived competence to use computational thinking effectively, along with their computer programming learning attitude regarding the C++ programming language for one semester (2 hours per week, 36 total learning hours). A total of 495 students specializing in the medical field participated in the study. Structural equation models were constructed according to three adapted scales: the computer programming learning attitude scale, the computational thinking perspectives scale, and the programming empowerment scale. The computer programming learning attitude scale is based on three factors: willingness, negativity, and necessity. The computational thinking perspectives scale also considers three factors: the ability to express, the ability to connect, and the ability to question. The programming empowerment scale is composed of four factors: meaningfulness, impact, creative self-efficacy, and programming self-efficacy. The results showed that a positive learning attitude will positively affect computational thinking perspectives and programming empowerment. However, when students have a negativity attitude, feeling that they are being forced to learn the C++ programming language, their computational thinking perspectives and programming empowerment will be negatively affected. In order to promote students’ learning attitude, various teaching strategies, teaching curriculum design, and pedagogy design could be further explored. Full article

Computational thinking (CT) is in the midst of an ongoing debate about its scope and definitions. There is a trend away from a “traditional” computer science-inspired agenda towards a focus on universal competences for today’s labor market. However—and this is the motivation behind the research—the shift described is just an unconscious attempt to reveal the immanent nature of CT as an evolving semiotic phenomenon. The aim of this study is to explore directions and perspectives for the further development of CT and related methodological design approaches. As a research strategy, this article utilizes a case study on the presented set of resources dedicated to CT early education and reveals it in terms of multimodal discourse analysis. As a result, a landscape of future CT trends is presented, uncovering CT from a multimodal semiotic perspective. This article discusses various issues related to CT and its multimodal semiotics nature, perspectives on the design of CT-related resources and additional educational issues such as the perspectives on instructional approaches for CT teaching. We conclude that CT as a social phenomenon is in the process of an evolutionary transformation of its constitutive structure in the direction of further revealing its agentive semiotic nature. Full article

Interest in computational thinking (CT) in the scientific community has increased significantly in the last 4 years, as evidenced by the numerous systematic reviews carried out. However, there is a lack of reviews that update the emerging conceptualization of CT and which also examine the roles of the school curriculum and teachers in the face of CT. A systematic literature review (SLR) consists of a collection of research conducted according to previous criteria with the aim of answering research questions with validity and quality. For this reason, the PRISMA-ScR statement was followed. Articles published in scientific journals, from Scopus and WoS, between January 2018 and August 2021 were included, in the English or Spanish language. The initial search resulted in 492 articles, to which the inclusion-exclusion criteria were applied. The final sample of texts for the present systematic review was n = 145. The texts were analyzed from three perspectives: conceptual, documentary and pedagogical. Thus, a renewal of previous literature reviews was carried out, updating the situation with research from recent years and new data, obtained to contribute to the collective intelligence on methodological strategies (80% of the sample was divided into “plugged” and “unplugged”); educational (more than 50% studied CT evaluation); and resources, including a collection of more than 119 educational resources. Full article

This article explores the development directions of the phenomenon of Computational Thinking (CT) from the perspectives of discourse analysis. The motivation is based on the understanding of CT as an advanced educational approach, methodology, and community, aimed at a set of learners’ digital and further competences having a huge impact on modern education and society. The novelty of this study lies in the attempt to look holistically at CT and its perspectives, considering it as an evolving phenomenon per se, leaving aside discussion on its internal characteristics or applications. The study utilizes a comprehensive analysis, applying discourse analysis and social semiotics methods. The results present the most trended storylines associated with CT and its context, providing a thorough introduction to the CT discursive landscape. The findings and discussion present a reflective insight into the discursive landscape directions, focusing on meaning-makers and their identities, the transformative and transductive potential of CT, observing the phenomenon’s development paths from a metaphorical perspective and positioning it towards the development of the socio-technical networks it mediates. In the conclusion, the options for development and possible trends in the reconstitution of the CT phenomenon are outlined. Full article

As computer science has become a vital power in facilitating the rapid and sustainable development of various fields, equipping everyone with computational thinking (CT) has been recognized as one of the core pillars supporting the sustainable development of individuals and our digital world. However, it remains challenging for secondary school students to assimilate CT. Recently, critical reflection has been proposed as a useful metacognitive strategy for regulating students’ thinking to solve current and future problems. In this study, a quasi-experiment was conducted to investigate the role of critical reflection in advancing eighth-grade students’ CT. The participants were 95 eighth-grade students, comprising an experimental group (n = 49) and a control group (n = 46). The students’ CT was evaluated based on their learning performance in computational concepts, computational practices, and computational perspectives. The results showed that critical reflection, compared with traditional instruction from teachers, could significantly advance eighth-grade students’ CT. Interestingly, the two groups showed significantly different learning performance in computational practices during the learning process. Furthermore, interaction with peers and instructors played an essential role in helping students engage as active agents in critical reflection. The results of this study emphasize the need to develop students’ CT by practicing critical reflection in eighth-grade education. Full article