ERIC Number: EJ1469811
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2025
Pages: 20
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1176-3647
EISSN: EISSN-1436-4522
Available Date: 0000-00-00
Mapping the Public Understanding of Computational Thinking Education: Insights from Social Q&A Platform Discussions
Stella Xin Yin; Dion Hoe-Lian Goh; Choon Lang Quek; Zhengyuan Liu
Educational Technology & Society, v28 n2 p15-34 2025
With the growing popularity of computational thinking (CT) classes in K-12 schools, it is important to investigate public perceptions of these initiatives. Analyzing public discussions and opinions provides valuable insights that can inform future educational policies and reforms. In this paper, we collected questions and answers related to CT education on the Quora platform. Next, we applied a topic modeling approach to find out major topics in online discussions. Through analysis, we identified 6 topics in questions and 14 topics in answers. Our findings revealed that people showed great interests but also uncertainty about CT education learning outcomes. Many people asked for suggestions on CT learning tools and platforms, but they struggled to identify appropriate information to support their learning needs. Among their answers, while people held positive attitudes toward CT education, they were concerned about the difficulties their children faced in the learning process and the problem of educational equity. Moreover, since CT practices cultivate information literacy skills for children in the 21st century, the benefits of CT education might be overestimated. These findings deepen our understanding of CT education, which could inform education policies and future research directions.
Descriptors: Computation, Thinking Skills, Elementary Secondary Education, Public Opinion, Barriers, Equal Education, Information Literacy, Social Media, Coding, Programming, Robotics, Computer Science Education
International Forum of Educational Technology & Society. Available from: National Yunlin University of Science and Technology. No. 123, Section 3, Daxue Road, Douliu City, Yunlin County, Taiwan 64002. e-mail: journal.ets@gmail.com; Web site: https://www.j-ets.net/
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A