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Mapping Computational Thinking for a Transformative Pedagogy

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Computational Thinking in the STEM Disciplines

Abstract

The chapter presents learners’ understanding of Computational Thinking concepts through illustrative flowcharts. Undergraduate university students design, build, and program LEGO Mindstorms EV3 robots to solve problems set as robotic tasks in a symbolic disaster scenario. Post-task flowcharts representing mental models of Computational Thinking are drawn as students reflect upon their problem-solving processes. The flowcharts are then compared with the semiotic representation of the programmed solutions. It was ascertained that students were able to express recognition of the Computational Thinking concepts of modularity, decomposition, and algorithmic logic but had difficulty expressing explicit recognition of generalization and abstraction. Subsequent implications for teaching and learning are then addressed at length in terms of task design and pedagogy.

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Acknowledgments

The research is supported by JAIST kakenhi [grant number 15K01080]. Many thanks to students in the iVERG lab at Future University Hakodate, Japan.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Media Architecture, Future University Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan

    Michael Vallance

  2. National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore

    Phillip A. Towndrow

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  1. Michael Vallance
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  2. Phillip A. Towndrow
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Emirates College for Advanced Education, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

    Myint Swe Khine

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Vallance, M., Towndrow, P.A. (2018). Mapping Computational Thinking for a Transformative Pedagogy. In: Khine, M. (eds) Computational Thinking in the STEM Disciplines. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-93566-9_15

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-93566-9_15

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-93565-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-93566-9

  • eBook Packages: EducationEducation (R0)

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