Primary school students' perceptions and developed artefacts and language from learning coding and computational thinking using the 3C model

Background

A resurgence in teaching coding in primary school classrooms has led to a pedagogical swing towards using physical computing and coding to develop students' use of algorithms, computational thinking, and problem-solving skills. Two obstacles impede the optimal development of these objectives: the availability of a suitable pedagogy and an instructional sequencing model for primary school teachers to effectively present coding and computational thinking concepts and skills to students in alignment with their developmental stage.

Objective

This study aims to address both obstacles by introducing the 3C Model, a newly developed instructional sequence grounded in established pedagogies and designed to effectively teach coding and computational thinking skills to primary school students based on their developmental stage.

Methods

The qualitative study employed two data sources to triangulate findings, using: (1) semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis to investigate 11 primary school students' perceptions of their learning experiences with the 3C Model, and (2) researcher observations along with reflections of the students' developed and demonstrated learning through the method of knowing-in-action, reflection-in-action, and reflection-on-action.

Results and Conclusions

The findings of this study fill a gap in the existing literature by demonstrating that the pedagogical and sequential approach embedded in the 3C Model not only enhanced students' engagement levels but also resulted in improved curriculum learning outcomes. The 3C Model provides teachers with a coherent and age-appropriate instructional structure. It uses physical computing devices and digital coding platforms to introduce coding concepts, furthering the development of computational thinking skills in primary school students beyond mere procedural and rote learning.

Implications

The study holds important implications for practical applications, as it addresses an absence in the literature of an established pedagogy and instructional sequencing model for effectively teaching coding and computational thinking concepts and skills to primary school students. Drawing on established pedagogical and developmental learning theories, the 3C Model provides primary school teachers with an engaging, age-appropriate instructional method that avoids decontextualised teaching and surface-based learning. Instead, it encourages collaborative student work and contextualised learning, steering away from isolated and generic approaches.