scholarly journals Fundamental: Determining Prerequisites for Middle School Students to Participate in Robotics-based STEM Lessons: A Computational Thinking Approach

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
S.M. Mizanoor Rahman ◽  
Sonia Chacko ◽  
Sheila Borges Rajguru ◽  
Vikram Kapila
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Computational Thinking ◽  
School Students

Investigation of Variables Related to Computational Thinking Self-Efficacy Level in Middle School Students

2020 ◽  
pp. 54-75
Author(s):  
Hatice Yildiz Durak ◽  
Mustafa Saritepeci ◽  
Ahmet Topçu ◽  
Aykut Durak
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Computational Thinking ◽  
Academic Variables ◽  
School Students ◽  
Programming Education ◽  
Predictive Variables ◽  
Programming Tool ◽  
Math Class

This study examined the predictiveness of demographic and academic variables and the variables which are in relation with programming on computational thinking (CT) self-efficacy of middle school students who received and who did not receive programming education. Relational screening model was utilized in this study. One-hundred ninety-nine middle school students from 5th and 6th grades in Turkey composed the participants of the research. As the result of the research, it was found that CT self-efficacy level is low. Furthermore, programming experiences of the students are approximately two years. The most important predictor of CT self-efficacy of the students who received programming education is demographic variables. Predictive variables' relative order of importance on CT self-efficacy of the students who received programming education are gender, utilized programming tool, math class grade point average, and attitude towards programming.

“It Must Include Rules”

2021 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-41
Author(s):  
Eliane S. Wiese ◽  
Marcia C. Linn
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Computational Thinking ◽  
Computer Models ◽  
School Science ◽  
Scientific Models ◽  
Science Content ◽  
School Students ◽  
Science Courses ◽  
High Level

When middle school students encounter computer models of science phenomenon in science class, how do they think those computer models work? Computer models operationalize real-world behaviors of selected variables, and can simulate interactions between the modeled elements through programmed instructions. This study explores how middle school students think about the high-level semantic meaning of those instructions, which we term rules . To investigate this aspect of students’ computational thinking, we developed the Computational Modeling Inventory and administered it to 253 7 th grade students. The Inventory included three computer models that students interacted with during the assessment. In our sample, 99% of students identified at least one key rule underlying a model, but only 14% identified all key rules; 65% believed that model rules can contradict; and 98% could not distinguish between emergent patterns and behaviors that directly resulted from model rules. Despite these misconceptions, compared to the “typical” questions about the science content alone, questions about model rules elicited deeper science thinking, with 2--10 times more responses including reasoning about scientific mechanisms. These results suggest that incorporating computational thinking instruction into middle school science courses might yield deeper learning and more precise assessments around scientific models.

scholarly journals Identifying middle school students’ challenges in computational thinking-based science learning

2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Satabdi Basu ◽  
Gautam Biswas ◽  
Pratim Sengupta ◽  
Amanda Dickes ◽  
John S. Kinnebrew ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Science Learning ◽  
Computational Thinking ◽  
School Students

Extending Computational Thinking into Information and Communication Technology Literacy Measurement

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-25
Author(s):  
Han Sung Kim ◽  
Soohwan Kim ◽  
Wooyoul Na ◽  
Woon Jee Lee
Keyword(s):  
Middle School ◽  
Middle School Students ◽  
Information And Communication Technology ◽  
Communication Technology ◽  
Computational Thinking ◽  
Female Students ◽  
Male Students ◽  
Ict Literacy ◽  
School Students ◽  
Information And Communication

As Information and Communication Technology (ICT) literacy education has recently shifted to fostering computing thinking ability as well as ICT use, many countries are conducting research on national curriculum and evaluation. In this study, we measured Korean students’ ICT literacy levels by using the national measurement tool that assesses abilities of the IT (Information Technology) area and the CT (Computational Thinking) area. A research team revised an existing ICT literacy assessment tool for the IT test and developed a new CT test environment in which students could perform actual coding through a web-based programming tool such as Scratch. Additionally, after assessing ICT literacy levels, differences in ICT literacy levels by gender and grade were analyzed to provide evidence for national education policies. Approximately 23,000 elementary and middle school students participated in the 2018 national assessment of ICT literacy, accounting for 1% of the national population of students. The findings demonstrated that female students had higher literacy levels in most sub-factors of IT and CT areas. Additionally, in the areas of strengths and weaknesses, the ratio of below-basic achievement among male students was at least two times greater than that of female students. Nonetheless, male students scored higher on CT automation, a coding item that involved problem solving using Scratch. Looking at the difference according to grade level, the level improved as the school year increased in elementary school, but there was no difference in middle school. When analyzing the detailed elements of middle school students, the automation factor of seventh grade students was found to be higher than eighth and ninth grade students. Based on these results, this study discussed some implications for ICT and computing education in elementary and middle schools.

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