This study examines the effectiveness of a collaborative support method in enhancing programming learning outcomes in a serious game. The game Code Hasp was developed to facilitate the comparison between two support methods, worked examples and a collaborative peer support approach. A total of 111 elementary school students participated, divided…

There is substantial evidence that incorporating interactive environments for game-based instruction has a significant potential to support the development of computational thinking and programming skills in primary education students. However, it is not clear whether a simulation game (SG) with different user interface elements, created via…

Background and Context: Though still a nascent area of research, serious games have been presented as means of engaging students in computer programming and computational thinking due to their immersive and interactive nature. Existing research is limited in its ability to provide systems based on sound instructional design models, and only a few…

The purpose of this study is to introduce a developed activity which is named "CityMap" and to present an example of the implementation and evaluation process of a computer science unplugged activity through this activity. The aim of this activity is to write algorithms of going from one place to another using step by step instructions.…

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the implementation and impact of the Pack program. The Pack was developed by the New York Hall of Science (NYSCI) and includes a digital game and set of curricular and professional development resources that aim to support computational thinking teaching and learning in middle school science and computer…

This study examines the design, implementation, and evaluation of a Digital Educational Escape Room (DEER) titled "Escape from the Doctor's Office," developed to enhance artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML) literacy. Grounded in constructivist pedagogy and behaviorist principles, the DEER was designed using the ADDIE…

Educational escape rooms aims to motivate students, to strengthen knowledge and evaluate learning. Pre-service teachers enrolled in "Computer Science and Digital Competency" course shows lack of motivation and difficulties to realise its usefulness in everyday practice, becoming an ideal context to apply this strategy. 157 students…

The purpose of this research was to describe the impact of digital game building on fourth grade gifted and talented students' problem-solving, creativity, and collaboration skills. Increasingly, there has been a call to involve students in real-world experiences through projects that explore authentic issues using technology. Game design-based…

Our online programming language courses have been developed for youngsters who are interested in computer programming. The courses were gamified with some common gamification elements: points, badges, incentives, immediate feedback and leaderboard. The developed Learning Management System (LMS) for our learning portal provides the chance to…

Wheel-spinning refers to the failure to master a skill in a timely manner or after a considerable number of practice opportunities. Several past studies have developed wheel-spinning models in the areas of Mathematics and Physics. However, no models have been made for the context of novice programming. The purpose of this study was to develop…

Purpose: This study aimed to create a mobile serious game that incorporates a learning framework, particularly collaborative learning theory, to develop students' computational thinking skills. Methodology: Based on the framework of Brennan and Resnick, an adaptation was made within the context of a mobile serious game mapping the different…

Sorting is a fundamental computing concept. As for today, it is taught at the secondary school level. However, this kind of algorithm is an obstacle for some students due to its high level of abstraction. To prevent discouragement as well as to incorporate a fun and challenging algorithmic task, a novel tablet-based digital game,…

Problem solving skills are considered an important component in learning to program in an introductory programming (IP) course for novices. This study introduced a PROSOLVE game to enhance problem solving skills of novice programmers in the introductory programming course. The game is based on pseudo-code technique. A survey was employed to…

Games with educational purposes usually follow a computer-assisted instruction concept that is predefined and rigid, offering no adaptability to each student. To overcome such problem, some ideas from Intelligent Tutoring Systems have been used in educational games such as teaching introductory programming. The objective of this study was to…

In response to a need to equip youth to become successful contributors to our growing digital economy, educators and researchers are exploring ways to incorporate computational thinking (CT) for all across curricular domains. In this paper, we take a place-based approach to examine how and what CT practices youth learn through designing mobile…