Three +1 Perspectives on Computational Thinking

Abstract

Computational Thinking (CT) is a highly contentious subject with many diverging meanings and definitions. This study presents a preliminary literature review of 71 peer-reviewed articles on CT. The papers indicate the existence of five main aspects that have historically been used in association with its definition: Algorithm, Abstraction, Modelling, Simulation, and Implementation. Based on this preliminary literature study, semi-structured interviews with eight CT scholars are conducted, in order to evaluate these aspects and to identify qualitatively different perspectives on CT, which integrate the mentioned aspects in different ways. From the interviews, three different perspectives emerged, focusing on: Reasoning, Simplification, and Automation. Furthermore, the goal of having computationally educated citizens is extrapolated from the interviews, indicating an additional perspective (+1) titled Empowerment, which appears as embedded within all the previous three perspectives. This paper proposes to put these three (+1) perspectives in dialogue, in an effort to support researchers and practitioners working with CT across different fields.