Computational thinking (CT) is playing an increasingly relevant role within disciplinary teaching in elementary school, particularly in science. However, many teachers are unfamiliar with CT, either because their education occurred before the popularization of CT or because CT instruction was not included in their pre-service coursework. For these…

Objectives: The increasing demand for computing skills has led to a rapid rise in the development of new computer science (CS) curricula, many with the goal of equitably broadening the participation of underrepresented students in CS. While such initiatives are vital, factors outside of the school environment also play a role in influencing…

Objectives: Computer Science (CS) education has become increasingly prevalent in elementary schools because of multiple rationales, such as the importance of computational literacy and the growing demand for CS-related workforce preparation. As elementary CS standards continue to be adopted by many states, more examples and voices from the field…

Abstraction is one of the most fundamental ideas in computer science (CS), and as such, according to Bruner, it should be taught spirally, starting as early as possible and revisited at every level of education. However, teaching CS abstraction to novices is a very challenging task, and CS educational research has often demonstrated students'…

We explore the feasibility of early introduction to automata theory through gamification. We designed a puzzle game that players can answer correctly if they understand the fundamental concepts of automata theory. In our investigation, 90 children played the game, and their actions were recorded in play logs. An analysis of the play logs shows…

Computational Thinking (CT) has been recognized as one of the fundamental skills that all graduates should acquire. For this reason, motivational concerns need to be addressed at an early age of a child, and reaching students who do not consider themselves candidates for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines is important as…