Assessing implicit computational thinking in game-based learning: A logical puzzle game study

Assessing implicit computational thinking in game-based learning: A logical puzzle game study

Assessing implicit computational thinking in game-based learning: A logical puzzle game study

Tongxi Liu

Abstract

"To date, extensive work has been devoted to incor-porating computational thinking in K-12 education. Recognizing students' computational thinking stages in game-based learning environments is essential to capture unproductive learning and provide appropri-ate scaffolding. However, few reliable and valid com-putational thinking measures have been developed, especially in games, where computational knowl-edge acquisition and computational skill construc-tion are implicit. This study introduced an innovative approach to explore students' implicit computational thinking through various explicit factors in game- based learning, with a specific focus on Zoombinis, a logical puzzle-based game designed to enhance students' computational thinking skills. Our results showed that factors such as duration, accuracy, num-ber of actions and puzzle difficulty were significantly related to students' computational thinking stages, while gender and grade level were not. Besides, find-ings indicated gameplay performance has the poten-tial to reveal students' computational thinking stages and skills. Effective performance (shorter duration, fewer actions and higher accuracy) indicated practi-cal problem-solving strategies and systematic compu-tational thinking stages (eg, Algorithm Design). This work helps simplify the process of implicit computa-tional thinking assessment in games by observing the explicit factors and gameplay performance. These insights will serve to enhance the application of gami-fication in K-12 computational thinking education, of-fering a more efficient method to understanding and fostering students' computational thinking skills."

Reference

Liu, T. (2024). Assessing implicit computational thinking in game-based learning: A logical puzzle game study. British Journal of Educational Technology, 55(5), 2357–2382. Retrieved from https://bera-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/bjet.13443

Keywords

Computational Thinking Assessment, Data Science Applications, Game-Based Learning Analytics