Computational Thinking? Yes, but how do I teach it?
Briefly put, computational thinking is a problem solving process that combines critical thinking with the computing power and as such it represents the foundation for creativity and innovation ( ISTE ). Because computational thinking can - and should be applied to all aspects of life, it is an important skill that our students need to master. But how can we teach it to our students? Are we teaching it already without being fully aware of it? Yes, we are! I have just stumbled upon a course by Google for Education that provides an excellent explanation as well as lots of resources on how to teach computational thinking. First of all, to fully understand what computational thinking really means, the course authors break it down into the following four elements: Decomposition: Breaking down data, processes, or problems into smaller, manageable parts Pattern Recognition: Observing patterns, trends, and regularities in data Abstraction: Identifyin...