Presentation for ITTE Conference 2016

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From Computational Thinking to
Computational Participation
Chris Shelton
c.shelton@chi.ac.uk

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Woollard (2016)
In the UK, the term 'computational thinking' has been
described in different ways for different audiences but there is
a growing consensus that computational thinking is a
cognitive or thought process involving logical reasoning by
which problems are solved and artefacts, procedures and
systems are better understood. It embraces:
• the ability to think algorithmically;
• the ability to think in terms of decomposition;
• the ability to think in generalisations,
• the ability to identify and make use of patterns;
• the ability to think in abstractions, choosing good
representations; and
• the ability to think in terms of evaluation.

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7. CONCEPT DESCRIPTION
sequence identifying a series of steps for a task
loops running the same sequence multiple times
parallelism making things happen at the same time
events one thing causing another thing to happen
conditionals making decisions based on conditions
operators support for mathematical and logical expressions
data storing, retrieving, and updating values
COMPUTATIONAL CONCEPTS
PRACTICE DESCRIPTION
experimenting and
iterating
developing a little bit, then trying it out, then developing some more
testing and debugging making sure things work – and finding and solving problems when
they arise
reusing and remixing making something by building on existing projects or ideas
abstracting and
modularizing
exploring connections between the whole and the parts
COMPUTATIONAL PRACTICES
PERSPECTIVE DESCRIPTION
expressing realizing that computation is a medium of creation
“I can create.”
connecting recognizing the power of creating with and for others
“I can do different things when I have access to others.”
questioning feeling empowered to ask questions about the world
“I can (use computation to) ask questions to make sense of
(computational things in) the world.”
COMPUTATIONAL PERSPECTIVES

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Computational Thinking
Each of these definitions overlap but they are
not the same.
If computational thinking is at the heart of the
computing curriculum, what are we trying to
achieve?
Is the aim of computing to develop individual
thinking skills?

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Questions for practice?
A focus on ‘thinking’ might lead to a focus on
teaching concepts and ‘unplugged activities’
And what about the balance with other strands
of the curriculum:
• Computer Science
• Information Technology
• Digital Literacy

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An alternative view…
Research by Yasmin Kafai and colleagues at the
University of Pennsylvania have suggested we
need to widen our view of what children should
do and learn.
They have introduced the term:
“computational participation”

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Computational participation expands the idea of
computational thinking to include personal
expression and social participation.
It is “the ability to solve problems with others,
design systems for and with others, and draw on
computer science concepts, practices and
perspectives to understand the cultural and
social nature of human behavior.” (Kafai and
Burke 2014)

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The participation gap
The term computational participation
intentionally recalls Jenkins (2006) idea of a
‘participation gap’
This is the gap between the ways that children
from different socio-economic and ethnic
backgrounds use technology and participate in
online activity.

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“When computation is thought of in terms of
participation and not just thinking, it becomes
clear that there is a tremendous discrepancy in
who gets to participate.”
Kafai and Burke

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Participation…
What might computational participation look
like in our classrooms?
• Pupils learning to express themselves through
coding (and recognise how others are doing
this)
• Participation through re-mixing code
• Participation in communities of coding

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Some examples
• Use Scratch 2.0
• Teach children how to comment
• Start by re-mixing
• Teach the ‘backpack’
• Contribute to studios

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Scratch 2.0

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Teacher Accounts
Coming soon:
http://scratched.gse.harvard.edu/discussions/n
ews-and-announcements/scratch-teacher-
accounts

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Comments and Messages

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Positive

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Less positive!

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Helpful

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Unhelpful

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Re-mix

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Use the backpack

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Studios

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Broader computing
By doing these things, we help pupils to
participate in an international community.
But we also address lots more of the computing
curriculum:
• E-safety – what and how should we share?
• Digital Literacy and digital expression…

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ITE
How can we encourage our ITE students to
develop their computational participation?

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“I recognize the power and value of computational
ideas but worry that computational thinking is
often interpreted too narrowly, focusing on how
individual people learn and use computational
concepts for solving problems. Kafai and Burke’s
conception of computational participation serves as
a broader, more inclusive framework for computer
science education, expanding beyond individual
problem solving to include personal expression,
creative design, and social engagement.”
Resnick (2014)

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Your challenge:
How can we develop teachers who ensure that
pupils learn to participate rather than just think
about computing?

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Chris Shelton
c.shelton@chi.ac.uk