Computational Thinking, spatial and logical skills. An investigation at primary school

Abstract

The pedagogical outcomes of the implementation of Computational Thinking (CT) have been recently defined, while different approaches into the didactic dimensions have been proposed. From an epistemological point of view, some psychological aspects and their relationship with the general construct deserve further investigation. The present study aimed to evaluate the relationship between logical thinking, divergent thinking and spatial skills with CT. Elithorn test, Raven’s Progressive Matrices, Creative Thinking test were evaluated on students from 3rd to 5th grade, a sample of 51 pupils for the first training, and a sample of 43 for the second one. The tests were administered before and after the coding activities. Teachers and researchers collaborated on the planning and implementation of the training. The activities consisted of eight workshops, based on several CT-related processes (planning, problem-solving tasks using building bricks, storyboards, coding with LegoWeDo and Scratch). Qualitative data were collected in the form of a focus group and an interview. They were conducted with the teachers involved to investigate their perception at the end of the experiment. Results showed a relevant relationship of CT with spatial planning, and a moderate one with logical thinking, while no impact was due to creative thinking. These results further elucidate the recent CT theoretical framework, in which spatial skills play a meaningful role.

Keywords

• computational thinking
• cognitive skills
• computer science education
• k-12
• teacher training