The importance of computational thinking training for primary school teachers
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31812/educdim.4466Keywords:
computational thinking, decomposition, abstraction, patterns, algorithms, primary school, standard of primary education, digital educational resources, digital competence of primary school teachersAbstract
The importance of modern schools in developing students’ problem-solving skills, including through digital tools, is described in the article, which includes the development of basic coding skills and digital literacy, as well as the ability to solve problems and make decisions based on planning and analysis of situations. Computational thinking (CT) is built on the foundation of these abilities. The authors contend that the employment of specialized digital tools promotes the development of computational thinking and that purposeful creation of computational thinking improves teachers’ and students’ digital competence. The concept of CT, as well as existing definitions and components, are examined in this article. A list of courses from various countries’ curriculum on which CT is studied in primary school is provided. The importance of CT as a fundamental talent for everyone is underlined, and it should be developed through the integration of several disciplines to solve problems. The link between the CT components and the key competencies that should be instilled in kids as part of the primary education curriculum. The findings of a survey of more than 60 primary school teachers from various regions of Ukraine about their understanding of the concept of computational thinking and their experience in the development of skills related to all components of computational thinking in primary school students are presented. A review of open educational resources from around the world is offered to assist teachers in enhancing students’ CT skills. The strategy for putting the CT development concept into practice for future teachers and primary school teachers is offered, taking into account the ability to employ specific digital tools.
Downloads
References
Digital education action plan (2021-2027), https://education.ec.europa.eu/focus-topics/digital-education/about/digital-education-action-plan
The Future of Jobs Report 2020 (Oct 2020), https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-future-of-jobs-report-2020/
Allsopp, B.B.: A playful programming products vs. programming concepts matrix. In: Pivec, M., Gründler, J. (eds.) Proceedings of the 11th European Conference on Game-Based Learning. vol. 1. Academic Conferences and Publishing International, Reading, UK (2017), https://vbn.aau.dk/en/publications/a-playful-programming-products-vs-programming-concepts-matrix
Bocconi, S., Chioccariello, A., Dettori, G., Ferrari, A., Engelhardt, K.: Developing computational thinking in compulsory education – Implications for policy and practice. Tech. Rep. EUR 28295 EN, European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Luxembourg (2016). https://doi.org/10.2791/792158, https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/bitstream/JRC104188/jrc104188_computhinkreport.pdf
Boiko, M.A.: Development and implementation of electronic learning resources in the process of teaching computer science to elementary school students. The thesis for the degree of Candidate of Pedagogical Science, in specialty 13.00.10 – Information and Communication Technologies in Education, State Institution „Taras Shevchenko National University of Luhansk”, Starobilsk (2019), http://dspace.luguniv.edu.ua/xmlui/handle/123456789/4054
Csizmadia, A., Curzon, P., Dorling, M., Humphreys, S., Ng, T., Selby, C., Woollard, J.: Computational thinking - a guide for teachers. Project report (2015), https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/424545/
Duncan, C., Bell, T.: A pilot computer science and programming course for primary school students. In: Proceedings of the Workshop in Primary and Secondary Computing Education. p. 39–48. WiPSCE ’15, Association for Computing Machinery, New York, NY, USA (2015). https://doi.org/10.1145/2818314.2818328
Fletcher, G.H.L., Lu, J.J.: Human Computing Skills: Rethinking the K-12 Experience. Commun. ACM 52(2), 23–25 (feb 2009). https://doi.org/10.1145/1461928.1461938, https://cacm.acm.org/magazines/2009/2/19318-human-computing-skills-rethinking-the-k-12-experience/fulltext
Fokides, E.: Students learning to program by developing games: Results of a year-long project in primary school settings. Journal of Information Technology Education: Research 16, 475–505 (2017), https://doi.org/10.28945/3893Educational Dimension (2022) https://doi.org/10.31812/educdim.4466
International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA): Operational Definition of Computational Thinking for K–12 Education (2011), https://cdn.iste.org/www-root/Computational_Thinking_Operational_Definition_ISTE.pdf
Kuzminska, O., Mazorchuk, M., Morze, N., Pavlenko, V., Prokhorov, A.: Digital competency of the students and teachers in ukraine: Measurement, analysis, development prospects. In: Ermolayev, V., Suárez-Figueroa, M.C., Yakovyna, V., Kharchenko, V.S., Kobets, V., Kravtsov, H., Peschanenko, V.S., Prytula, Y., Nikitchenko, M.S., Spivakovsky, A. (eds.) Proceedings of the 14th International Conference on ICT in Education, Research and Industrial Applications. Integration, Harmonization and Knowledge Transfer. Volume II: Workshops, Kyiv, Ukraine, May 14-17, 2018. CEUR Workshop Proceedings, vol. 2104, pp. 366–379. CEUR-WS.org (2018), http://ceur-ws.org/Vol-2104/paper_169.pdf
Lee, I., Martin, F., Denner, J., Coulter, B., Allan, W., Erickson, J., Malyn-Smith, J., Werner, L.: Computational thinking for youth in practice. ACM Inroads 2(1), 32–37 (feb 2011). https://doi.org/10.1145/1929887.1929902
Lu, J.J., Fletcher, G.H.L.: Thinking about computational thinking. In: Proceedings of the 40th ACM Technical Symposium on Computer Science Education. p. 260–264. SIGCSE ’09, Association for Computing Machinery, New York, NY, USA (2009). https://doi.org/10.1145/1508865.1508959
Morze, N.V., Kuzminska, O.H.: System of information support of formation of masters’ ICT competence scientific component. Information Technologies and Learning Tools 44(6), 42–56 (Dec 2014). https://doi.org/10.33407/itlt.v44i6.1146, https://journal.iitta.gov.ua/index.php/itlt/article/view/1146
Pasichnyk, O.V.: Computational thinking in the computer science lessons. Kompiuter u shkoli ta simi (7), 13–18 (2014), http://nbuv.gov.ua/UJRN/komp_2014_7_5
Pérez-Marı́n, D., Hijón-Neira, R., Martı́n-Lope, M.: A methodology proposal based on metaphors to teach programming to children. IEEE Revista Iberoamericana de Tecnologias del Aprendizaje 13(1), 46–53 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1109/RITA.2018.2809944
Selby, C., Woollard, J.: Refining an understanding of computational thinking. Working paper (December 2014), https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/372410/
Sukhomlin, V.A.: International educational standards in the field of information technology. Applied informatics (1(37)), 33–54 (2012), http://www.appliedinformatics.ru/general/upload/articles/PI_137_2012_light_33-renamed.pdf
Tsukamoto, H., Takemura, Y., Nagumo, H., Ikeda, I., Monden, A., Matsumoto, K.: Programming education for primary school children using a textual programming language. In: 2015 IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference, FIE 2015, El Paso, TX, USA, October 21-24, 2015. pp. 1–7. IEEE Computer Society (2015). https://doi.org/10.1109/FIE.2015.7344187
Wing, J.M.: Computational thinking. Commun. ACM 49(3), 33–35 (mar 2006). https://doi.org/10.1145/1118178.1118215
Wing, J.M.: Computational thinking and thinking about computing. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences 366(1881), 3717–3725 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1098/rsta.2008.0118, https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/abs/10.1098/rsta.2008.0118
Yadav, A., Stephenson, C., Hong, H.: Computational thinking for teacher education. Commun. ACM 60(4), 55–62 (mar 2017). https://doi.org/10.1145/2994591
Zha, S., Morrow, D.A.L., Curtis, J., Mitchell, S.: Learning culture and computational thinking in a spanish course: A development model. Journal of Educational Computing Research 59(5), 844–869 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1177/0735633120978530
Downloads
Submitted
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2022 Nataliia V. Morze, Olha V. Barna, Mariia A. Boiko
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
How to Cite
Accepted 2022-02-06
Published 2022-06-11