In this study, the visual estimation skills of fourth grade elementary school students based on their mathematical thinking processes were investigated. The research questions focus on understanding how students' mathematical thinking processes influence their visual estimation skills. A total of 445 students participated in the study. The…

As block-based visual programming platform such as Scratch become more accessible and supportive to children's programming learning, the demand on understanding a trajectory of children's computational thinking development through programming from their early ages increases rapidly in recent years. To explore the developmental process of…

The research examined the calculation methods used by pupils in Grades 3-6 when they were presented with problems that could be worked out efficiently and flexibly by applying number sense. The study was conducted with a convenience sample of 179 pupils between the ages 7 years and 10 months to 12 years and 10 months. in mainstream education in…

There is little empirical research related to how elementary students develop computational thinking (CT) and how they apply CT in problem-solving. To address this gap in knowledge, this study made use of learning trajectories (LTs; hypothesized learning goals, progressions, and activities) in CT concept areas such as sequence, repetition,…

Symbolic and situational mathematics are the two major representations of mathematical knowledge. Although previous literature has studied the relationship between the two from the perspective of teaching practice, learning effectiveness and behavioural performance, there is still a lack of empirical psychological research on cognitive mechanisms…

Being able to perform computational estimations efficiently is an important skill. Furthermore, computational estimation experiments are used to study general principles in strategy development. Rounding strategies are common in computational estimation. However, little is known about whether and when children use a mixed-rounding strategy (i.e.,…

Robotics is needed as education keeps up with challenges students are facing in a technological environment. A long-term research project focuses on developing a feasible robotics-based learning environment that enables primary school teachers to introduce computer science education. This paper shows educational robotics combining storytelling to…

Existing computational thinking (CT) research focuses on programming in K-12 education; however, there are challenges in introducing it into the formal disciplines. Therefore, we propose the introduction of non-programming plugged learning in mathematics to develop students' CT. The research and teaching teams collaborated to develop an…

This study aimed to develop a supplementary mathematics textbook on traditional game-based computational thinking for elementary school students. This textbook was developed using a research and development model consisting of five stages: analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation (ADDIE). The mathematical contexts of the…

Previous research has not adequately explored students' behavioral processes when addressing computational thinking (CT) problems of varying difficulty, limiting insights into students' detailed CT development characteristics. This study seeks to fill this gap by employing gamified CT items across multiple difficulty levels to calculate…

There is a growing awareness that many children are not developing fast and accurate retrieval-based strategies for solving single-digit addition problems. In this study we individually assessed 166 third and fourth grade children to identify a group of children (called accurate-min-counters) who frequently solved simple single-digit addition…

STEM experiences that capture students' curiosity have a unique role in inspiring awe in science, enculturing science engagement, and recruiting students to pursue STEM careers. Here, we present a unique interdisciplinary STEM experience for elementary school students that teaches them to write computer code to test primate intelligence at a zoo…

This study investigated the performance of 790 fourth graders from Taiwan for judging the reasonableness of a computational result by using corresponding methods pertaining to whole numbers. A number-sense web-based two-tier diagnostic test was used to assess the number-sense performance of the fourth graders who participated in this study. The…

Computational thinking (CT) has attracted significant interest among many educators around the globe. Despite this growing interest, research on CT and programming education in elementary school remains at an initial stage. Many relevant studies have adopted only one type of method to assess students' CT, which may lead to an incomplete view of…

Recently educational robotics has expanded into curriculum beyond traditional STEM fields, and which can also be used to foster computational thinking (CT) skills. Prior research has shown numerous interdisciplinary benefits related to CT, however, these influential factors have often been investigated with relatively few variables. This study…