Computational Thinking in the New Year
The move to virtual spaces and digital learning has made computational thinking a useful skill for students and teachers alike. Today’s world requires flexibility, creativity and problem solving, all of which can be found in the principles of computational thinking. For example, abstraction allows complex ideas to be used in solving problems, and the abstraction process requires a flexible and creative mind.
If you’re looking to improve your computational thinking skills, the new year is a good time to consider how to work toward that goal. Science has found that starting a new habit at the start of a week, month or year can improve morale, as you can harness the “fresh start effect” to encourage positive change. (Interestingly, the fresh start effect can backfire if you’re already doing well, so consider this if you’re looking to add to a preestablished computational thinking practice!)
All this is to say, with a temporal landmark in sight and computational thinking growing in importance, why not focus on computational thinking in the new year?
Practice SMART Goal Setting
Goals don’t have to be big and scary. Instead, focus on keeping them “SMART.” SMART goals are concrete, owing to their Specificity and Measurability, but they’re also Achievable. Achievability looks different from person to person. You might want to focus on so-called “small wins” rather than anything too ambitious. Keep things Relevant for you or your students, but also realize that Timely goals may involve scaling things back to guard your schedule and practice self-care.
One way to make goals more achievable is to make them process-based versus product-based. For example, if “running more” were your goal, you might focus on running a certain number of days (a process) or on running a specific mileage or pace (a product). Both goals are useful, but each focuses on a different aspect of running.
If you’re new to computational thinking, then a process-based habit — be it researching concepts, doing professional development or learning to code — may be better suited to your needs. The same is true for students who may be encountering the idea for the first time. If you’ve established a computational thinking classroom, however, a change in process may hinder rather than help.
Remember that each part of SMART is equally valuable in giving you (or your students!) the best chance in achieving goals. You know best what your executive skills can handle. While SMART isn’t a surefire goal-setting method, it’s still a good heuristic. You can think up some goals, then figure out how to smarten them up.
Considering Your Goals
So what kinds of goals might you try? First, think about your audience: are you trying to improve your skills or your students’ skills? Both goals are good, but naturally the path to each is different. Next, think about your or your students’ skill level with computational thinking. This is where the process- and product-based differentiation comes into play.
If you’ve immersed yourself in computational thinking or have had your students do computational thinking activities already, you might narrow your focus to adding aspects of computational thinking (such as the aforementioned abstraction) into lessons and projects more directly to improve upon particular skills. Likewise, if you’re new to computational thinking, there are tons of resources online to integrate into your classroom. For example, Computational Thinking Initiatives not only provides lesson plans, but also online activities called AI Adventures.
Computational Thinking Goals for You
If you want to improve your computational thinking skills, you might want to consider one of these ideas:
- Research computational thinking by reading journals. (There are plenty of case studies to check out, and some cognitive science studies overlap with facets of computational thinking.)
- Learn to code, setting a daily or weekly practice goal. (While coding ≠ computational thinking, it certainly doesn’t hurt. Check out this introductory course to learning the Wolfram Language to explore abstraction, algorithmic thinking and more.)
- Solve puzzles. (You can get a sense of big-picture thinking as well as figure out the underlying algorithms involved in solving specific puzzles.)
Note that many of these goals aren’t SMART. That’s because the specifics of each goal are up to you. Do you have the energy to keep up with a daily goal? The time? Daily goals can be big commitments, so if that’s a concern, consider making your goal weekly or monthly, or make it a numbered goal per month. For example, instead of reading journals for x minutes a day, you could read x number of articles per month. Doing so gives you a chance to allocate your time in a way that matches your lifestyle.
Computational Thinking Goals for Your Students
For students, coding and puzzle solving are good ways to integrate computational thinking into the classroom. (You might want to avoid subjecting them to academic journals if they’re on the younger side!) Your classroom goals will depend on both your subject and the skill level of your students.
Here are some other ideas to consider:
- Focus on ways to dive deep into one aspect of computational thinking. (For example, you could focus on abstraction in English or decomposition in mathematics, both of which dovetail nicely into existing curricula.)
- Share computational thinking to students directly. (As a corollary to the previous idea, make sure students know they are learning computational thinking rather than practicing it in part or as a whole incidental to other projects.)
- Check out articles on computational thinking for ways to add it to your lessons. (There are so many articles and so many ideas. These podcast notes, for example, suggest the AI Adventures mentioned earlier as a way for math educators to add coding to their classes. Search your field plus “computational thinking” to see what comes up, and check out articles under the “computational thinking” tag on this blog for other ideas.)
Little Steps, Big Learning
It’s a truism that new-year goals are often created with the best of intentions, only to flounder with the advent of spring. I’d posit that any goal related to computational thinking — whether learning about it or integrating it directly — is positive, even if it’s short lived. Given the usefulness of this skill, practice is helpful even if it’s done once or twice.
Many people who originally thought coding wasn’t for them have been surprised to discover how much they enjoy it, or how much it helps them explore their field of interest. For students, learning about computational thinking might spark a curiosity. Students who discover the satisfaction of solving a puzzle or engaging in algorithmic thinking will likely seek out more ways to think computationally.
Will a single serving of computational thinking create a classroom full of computational thinkers? No, but habitual problem solving just might. Sounds like a good goal to consider!
About the blogger:
Jesika Brooks
Jesika Brooks is an editor and bookworm with a Master of Library and Information Science degree. She works in the field of higher education as an educational technology librarian, assisting with everything from setting up Learning Management Systems to teaching students how to use edtech tools. A lifelong learner herself, she has always been fascinated by the intersection of education and technology. She edits the Tech-Based Teaching blog (and always wants to hear from new voices!).
