Computer programming is regarded as an important skill for the future. However, many K-12 students face challenges and difficulties in learning traditional text-based programming. Block-based visual programming (BVP) can reduce the difficulty of learning programming and is seen as a potential programming education tool. Nevertheless, the effects…

Computational thinking (CT), an essential 21st century skill, incorporates key computer science concepts such as abstraction, algorithms, and debugging. Debugging is particularly underrepresented in the CT training literature. This multi-level meta-analysis focused on debugging as a core CT skill, and investigated the effects of various debugging…

Computational thinking (CT), which is a cognitive skill used to solve problems with computational solutions, has drawn increasing attention among researchers and practitioners due to the growing recognition of CT competence as a 21st century skill. Collaboration is commonly integrated into CT education to facilitate novice learning, but there is…

The purpose of this research was to compare the performances of the Fixed Effect Model (FEM) and the Random Effects Model (REM) in the meta-analysis studies conducted through 5, 10, 20 and 40 studies with an outlier and 4, 9, 19 and 39 studies without an outlier in terms of estimated common effect size, confidence interval coverage rate and…

This study adopted a meta-analysis to explore the effectiveness of unplugged activities (UA) and programming exercises (PE) teaching approaches on computational thinking (CT) education. Through a two-stage literature collection and selection process, 29 articles were included in the meta-analysis, 31 independent effect sizes (16 of UA and 15 of…

The concept of "21st century skills" has entered our lives in the recent past and has been used to describe the skills that our children should be equipped with while preparing them for the future world. Coding skill, in this regard, is seen as a new 21st century skill that is assumed to be a part of logical reasoning. The main purpose…

This paper presents the results of a systematic review of the literature, including a meta-analysis, about the effectiveness of the use of Alice software in programming learning when compared to the use of a conventional programming language. Our research included studies published between the years 2000 and 2014 in the main databases. We gathered…