Editorial: Looking ahead: computational thinking in K12 education
Kati Mäkitalo, Jari Laru, Valentina Dagienė · Frontiers in Education · 2023
In this special issue, the focus is on computational thinking (CT) and the integration of CT into 18 curricula and existing educational practices. The term informatics is commonly used to refer to 19Computer Science (CS) and computing irrespectively to describe the disciplines that study and 20 develop theories, model and applications of information technology. CT shares its elements with 21 principles and concepts of those disciplines, as they are built upon similar foundations, such as 22 algorithms, sequences and parallelization, control and automation, and data processing, 23 representation and recognition (Denning and Tedre, 2019;Wing, 2006). Broadly speaking, CT refers 24 to an approach of solving complex problems by applying a set of concepts, practices and dispositions 25 which are fundamental to CS. In CS education, CT, a versatile concept that can be applied to 26 different contexts, may be used as an aid to understand principles and concepts of CS. In it broadens 27 definition, different learning strategies can be considered within the scope of CT Lindeberg and Öberg introduce the study, where the discursive analysis on the policy documents and 65 curricula was adapted to capture" the outworn dichotomy between the cultures" as they state in the 66 article. They acknowledge the differences between the disciplines (computer sciences and 67 humanities), which influence on curriculum discourses, national digital policy and practices. 68Lindeberg and Öberg are questioning the status of literacy and especially writing and reading skills 69 now and tomorrow on current technological developments. Their literacy vision is the transformation 70 from writing and reading text to writing and reading code. Based on the results in Swedish curricula 71 and documents programming is threated as specialized knowledge, which is a part of mathematics 72 and technology, rather than other subjects, such as the humanities and social sciences. Their 73 suggestion is to implement reading and writing code as digital literacy in education. 74 Contributions of this special issue shows some critical issues that should be acknowledged both in 75 scientific fields and practice. There is a need to widen our understanding about CT and include that 76 discussion to our scientific contributions in both fields. As the articles point out, CT is seen as 77 programming and as part of few subjects in schools, which limits the pupils' and teachers' 78 understanding about CT. This narrow perspective limits our opportunities to better understand the 79 possibilities of using technology and even design the technology for our own use. CT is not only 80 programming skills, but it is a part of our digital literacy as well includes many other skills and 81 knowledge than codes, such as problem solving, critical and logical thinking skills, creativity. The 82 integration of different disciplines is needed for exploring the meaningful use of technology in the 83 learning activities and outcomes in educational environments. To overcome these obstacles, more 84 long-term cooperation is needed in order to influence the development of the curriculum and the 85 existing educational practices for different disciplines, taking into account the circumstances. In 86 addition, it is necessary to adjust a certain way of thinking. We educate younger generation; we have 87 a responsibility to equip everyone, regardless of gender or socioeconomical background, with certain 88 skills and knowledge that will enable them to function actively in an increasingly digitalized world. 89