Developing Computational Thinking Through Games in Scratch

Abstract

Computational thinking (CT), as a paradigm for learning computer science among young students, has seen a large increase in popularity during recent years. Mainly it is described as a problem-solving process that includes logical, analytical, algorithmic thinking and dispositions, such as the ability to confidently deal with complexity and open-ended problems. The goal is to inspire and engage the learners in such a way that they get an idea of concepts on a concrete operational level. Its development could be supported by different activities, including variety of curriculum approaches, workshops, summer schools, seminars etc. In the paper we analyse the projects developed by primary school pupils during the constructionist workshops and the projects developed by students, prospective computer science teachers. We were interested in how the students understand computational concepts, as a dimension of CT, reflected in their projects. We quantitatively assessed projects with Dr. Scratch tool, which checks the presence of the previously mentioned concepts and offers a feedback report with ideas and tips how to improve the code, aiming to encourage students’ desire to keep on developing their programming skills. We compare the learning outcomes of two different projects: Maze and Escape Room. Our focus is on differences in thinking between pupils and students.