This study employed a case study design (Yin, "Case study research, design and methods," 2009) to investigate the processes used by 5th graders to design and develop computer games within the context of their environmental science unit, using the theoretical framework of "constructionism." Ten fifth graders designed computer games using "Scratch"…

It's no secret that fewer and fewer women are entering computer science fields. Attracting high school girls to computer science is only part of the solution. Retaining them while they are in higher education or the workforce is also a challenge. To solve this, there is a need to show girls that computer science is a wide-open field that offers…

Among educational researchers and practitioners, there is a growing interest in employing computer games for pedagogical purposes. The present research integrated a technology education class and a science class where 5th graders learned about environmental issues by designing games that involved environmental concepts. The purposes of this study…

An after-school program in which fifth and sixth graders were taught how to use the BASIC programming language using computer terminals is described. (MN)

A minicourse designed to teach fourth and fifth graders about computers included decoding computer cards, a "race" against the computer, a field trip, flow charting, and writing computer programs. The course was limited by the students' ability to understand abstract mathematical concepts. (MP)

To discover children's knowledge about computer operation and programing characteristics and its effect on children's perceptions of computer expertise, pre- and posttests were administered to 292 children from 5th, 7th and 9th grades. Children were randomly assigned to see a factual film on computers or to a film on another subject. It was…