Background and Context: Computational thinking (CT) is a fundamental skill and a new form of literacy that everyone should develop to participate in civic society. Sequencing and algorithmic thinking are at the core of CT. This study looked into how young children enrolled in a kindergarten in Colombia develop CT skills. Objective: This paper aims…

Background: While advocates for integrating Computational Thinking (CT) into existing K12 classrooms have acknowledged and aimed to address various barriers to implementation, we contend that a more foundational issue -- tensions between the epistemology of computing and those of existing disciplines -- has largely been overlooked. Studies of…

Background and Context: Computational thinking (CT) has been increasingly added to K-12 curricula, prompting teachers to grade more and more CT artifacts. This has led to a rise in automated CT assessment tools. Objective: This study examines the scope and characteristics of publications that use machine learning (ML) approaches to assess…

Background and Context: Computational thinking (CT) is a critical part of computing education in middle school. The existing practices of collaboration and collaborative design activities at this education level pairs well with CT practices, but this interaction has previously been under-explored in the existing literature. Objective: In this…

Background and Context: The Domain-Specific Programming (DSP) platforms EarSketch and TunePad are being used widely in schools for coding novices. Existing studies on both platforms have mainly concentrated on attitudinal changes, leaving a gap in the literature. Objective: The purpose of this research was to advance our understanding of two…

Background and Context: Computational thinking and practices (CT|P) are key competencies for learners in science and engineering. For studies with young adolescents as participants, manifested research philosophies are sometimes inconsistent with societal pluralisms. Objective: Based on research literature from 2016 to early 2019 for CT|P in…

There is a growing perception that computational thinking can be developed in unplugged environments. A recent trend among these unplugged approaches is the use of tabletop games. While there are many commercial tabletop games on the market that are promoted as teaching computer science and/or computational skills, little is known about how these…

Background and Context: In order to fully include learners with visual impairments in early programming education, it is necessary to gain insight into specificities regarding their experience of and approach to abstract computational concepts. Objective: In this study, we use the model of the layers of abstraction to explore how learners with…

Background and Context: Computational thinking (CT) is one of the 21st century skills required of graduates joining the workforce. Hence, countries have begun to incorporate CT into their curricula. Objective: There is, however, a dearth of research coming from Africa showing the extent of CT's integration in the science, technology, engineering,…

Background and Context: Though still a nascent area of research, serious games have been presented as means of engaging students in computer programming and computational thinking due to their immersive and interactive nature. Existing research is limited in its ability to provide systems based on sound instructional design models, and only a few…

Background and Context: Using a transformative learning framework, this qualitative study examines the perspectives and practices of 70 middle and high school content area teachers who attended two or more summer professional development workshops. Objective: This study describes how teachers' disciplinary perspectives and backgrounds influence…

Background and context: Despite the growing importance of computer science (CS) education, high-quality CS curricula for students in kindergarten to lower elementary grades are lacking. It is also unclear how students from underrepresented groups such as female students, students from low socioeconomic status, and students with disability respond…

Background & Context: This research focused on an online professional development (PD), the Inclusive Computer Science Model of PD, to support integrating computer science and computational thinking for all learners into K-5 literacy instruction. Objective: This research was conducted to understand elementary teachers' perceptions of the PD.…

Background and Context: There is a need for teachers who are prepared to teach integrated CS/CT throughout the K-12 curriculum. Drawing on three vignettes of teacher instructional practice, we build on a growing body of literature around how teachers integrate CS/CT into their classrooms after attending CS/CT focused professional development.…

Background and context: Historically underrepresented youth in computer science persistently experience barriers making it difficult to see themselves in the computer science field including computer science programs and curricula with consistent stereotypical references focused on competition, individualism, and male-associated topics…