Designing a computational thinking intervention for kindergarten students

Abstract

In recent years, the emphasis on Future Skills - such as Communication, Critical Thinking, Creativity, Cooperation, and Computational Thinking (CT) - has significantly increased in K-12 education, as these skills can empower students to understand new phenomena that shape society. Various countries are striving to provide students with learning opportunities to acquire these skills starting in early childhood education. However, the state of research on the implementation of CT in educational settings by teachers, the effectiveness of piloted educational materials, and the outcomes of teacher training programs remains limited, especially in early childhood education compared to other K-12 age groups. This work-in-progress paper presents an overview of related work on CT in early childhood Computer Science education, describes an intervention, and concludes with an outlook on the implications of the findings and potential future directions.