Beyond the interface

1. BEYOND THE
INTERFACE
a Brazilian Python experience
teaching kids arts, language and
mathematics
Luciana Louro

2. ■ LOURO, Luciana, luciana.louro@imatech.net.br, leclouro@gamail.com
■ LOURO, Donizetti, don.louro@imatech.net.br, donlouro@gmail.com
■ FRAGA, Tânia, tania.fraga@imatech.net.br
■ SILVA, Ismael, ismael.silva@imatech.net.br, prof.ismaelsilva@hotmail.com

3. Abstract
Is it possible to improve the language and mathematics learning of 5 to 10 years old children
using computer programming experience? And with non-alphabetized preschool child? The
didactic methodology of Guy Brousseau and programming-based literacy of Annette Vee
were used as parameters to evaluate two groups: one composed of non-alphabetized five-
year-olds students and other of a 10 years old child. These students took, during the second
semester of 2016, Python programming classes related literature, arts, language and
mathematics, for five months. Both groups displayed considerable development of language
construction and quantitative-topological mathematical reasoning. Basic programming
concepts such as algorithms, sequences, repetitions, variables and selection were also
successfully incorporated by children from the two selected ages. We argue that this
experience is an example to incorporate technology in the primary curriculum by the student
construction of knowledge slant. We also believe that this computational literacy approach
can help teacher to find an alternative place to technological education among the actual
myriad of the century Medias and emerging technological trends.
Key words: Education Technology, Art, Computational Literacy; linguistic and mathematical
thinking.

4. Introduction
■ The nature of language programming is naturally extrapolating the Computer
Science and being absorbed by the educational field (Vee, 2013). Although the
large debate over this subjec t, Vee (2013) summarizes the problem when
question if the language programming is indeed a form of literacy.
■ In line with this theory is the “literate programming concept” of Donald Knuth
(1992) and the advocacy for integration of programming language at basic
education curriculum (diSessa, 2000, Rushkoff, 2010 and Kemeny, 2013).
■ This computational literacy approach is rejected by Atwood (2012). This
argument is based on the specialized aspect of programming language. Thus,
learn to code besides a professional context would be a waste of time (Atwood,
2012).

5. ■ Based on diSessa thought, Vee (2013) analyzed different kinds of social uses for
coding, and concluded that language programming is becoming a literacy,
because its application in everyday life that overtake the specialized social
spheres and starts to pressure other professional fields like journalism, science
and education.
■ In parallel to this idea, Kleiman and Assis (2016) believe that the writing
phenomenon should be analyzed by the bias of the occasion of literacy,
understood as a social and cultural construction that overflow the ability to
decoding graphemes or to make phoneme-graphemes associations (Kleiman &
Assis, 2016).
■ From these considerations, it is understandable that educators should teach how
to use and create technology by coding.

6. Research´s Question
■ Is it possible to improve the language and mathematics
learning of 5 to 10 years old children using computer
programming experience?
■ And with non-alphabetized preschool child?

7. Research´s Objective
■ This work intent to investigate the development of mathematical, linguistic and
artist skills of 5 and 10 years old children in a specific context of Python
programming language classes.

8. Methodology Approach
■ A case study to analyse the learning of two group, one with 5 and 10 years old
children
■ The treatment of the data was guided by the appliance of the hermeneutic-
phenomenological approach.

9. Methodology Data Treatment
■ Therefore, the data treatment done in this research followed three steps.
■ The rewriting or textualization of the collected materials.
■ The reduction of these texts to its essential meaning.
■ The interpretation and measurement of the data by the evaluations criteria,
established as explains the table 1.

10. Methodology Evaluation Criteria
Fully Acquired (F.A) 
(100%≤ 80%)
applies knowledge autonomously
Partially Acquired_1
(P.A_1)

(80≤50%)
Require very little help to applies the knowledge.
Partially Acquired_2
(C.P_2)

(50%≤30%)
Require a lot of help to applies the knowledge.
Not Aquired (N.A) 
(30%≤0%)
Could not apply the knowledge without a directly
and constant support.

11. Results
■ As its possible to notice in the graphic of the figure 1 the results were organized
in two categories:
■ The first category represents the diagnostic evaluation, made during the first
three classes.
■ The second category corresponds to the overall result of the daily evaluations
made during the five months of research.

12. RESULTS
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Language Matematics Art Computacional Literacy
Group 1, 1th Evaluation Group 1 Final Evaluation Group 2 1th Evaluation Group 2 Final Evaluation

13. Discussion
■ The results reveled some important points
■ a practical application of the Kleiman and Assis (2010) concept of literacy,
understood as a social and cultural construction that overflow the ability to
decoding graphemes or to make phoneme-graphemes associations.
■ a promising application of the computational literacy (Vee, 2013) in the
education technology domain.

14. Discussion
■ The analogy of the acquisition´s processes of a code writing and human
language writing.
■ The figures 1 illustrates the group 1 final project process where kids used
reading and writing strategies to rewrite a computer program.

15. Discussion
Figure 2 – (A) Portrait of "family program" designed by a five years old student , and (B) preschool-
age student rewriting codes collectively with paper strip support.

16. Discussion - The Papers Strip
Strategy
A paper strip with the line of code
written in uppercase letters was given
to the students. We intended here to
respect the preference of preschool
children for reading and writing
uppercases letters, pointed by
Treiman and Kessler (2004). This
strategy enabled children to apply
their reading and writing skills more
comfortably.
Figure 2: e.g. of a paper strip used by children
as a support to read and write codes

17. Dicussion - Linguistic and
Mathematical Objectives
■ The linguistic Objective of group 1 was mobilize their visual awareness to the
textual code structure as well their sensibility to relate sound, image and text
to build meanings.
■ There for it was based on the Kleiman´s and Assis (2010) thought about the
importance of the literacy in the kid´s writing acquisition.
■ The role of mathematics in code construction demonstrated its effectiveness
as a tool to forward the student´s logical and mathematical thinking.
■ Thus, the didactic situation theory of Brousseau (1997), was profitably applied
here.

18. Discussion – Art, An Interdisciplinary
Triggering
■ The art and mathematics was used as an interdisciplinar tiggering to propose
concrete didactic situation for kids, as recommended by Brousseau
■ The finals projects examples of figure 3, illustrates this kind of approach

19. Discussion – Art, An Interdisciplinary
Triggering

20. Conclusions
■ In this research the use of a textual programming language, related to contents
of mathematics, art and language was proposed.
■ We intended to develop the mathematical, linguistics and artistic skills by the
programming computer experience, based on didactic situation of Brousseau
(1997) and Annete Vee (2013) computational literacy theories, in the context of
5 and 10 years old children.
■ Another concern of this work was to investigate the possibility to use a textual
programming language to teach non-alphabetized preschoolers students.

21. Conclusions
■ From the analysis of the learning results were extracted:
■ the experience of programming, based on didactyly situation Brousseau´s
theory (1997) can be a powerful tool to increase the language, mathematical
and artistic learning;
■ preschool non alphabetized children can be presented to code writing principle,
under the Vee´s concept of computational literacy (Vee, 2013) without much
problem.
■ the reader and writer behavior of kids face to code writing highlighted a relation
between language program practices and literacy.
■ the teaching of programming language, from the perspective of art, mathematics
and native language, can be a path to an interdisciplinary education.

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26. AUTHORS
Louro is the director of Institute of Mathematics and Arts of
São Paulo, IMA_SP, educational coordinator of
technology’s projects and teacher´s formation programs.
Master in Intelligence Technology and Design at Pontifical
University Catholic of São Paulo, she is the responsible
researcher subscribe at the Ethics Research Committee
at Federal University of São Paulo for de Kid IMatech
Project.
Luciana Louro

27. AUTHORS
Mathematician. President of Institute of
Mathematics and Arts of São Paulo; Researcher
of GAESI at Polithecnic Institute at University of
São Paulo, USP. Louro is, since 1980, interested
in Mathematics Didactic, Computational
Mathematics and Artificial Intelligence.
Donizetti Louro

28. AUTHORS
Director of Technology of Information applied to education in
Institut of Mathematics of São Paulo/ Computer Science Teacher
at Centro Paulo Souza in Ourinhos, São Paulo since 1994.
Master in Production Engineering from University of São Paulo,
he has a large experience in programming teaching.
Ismael Silva

29. AUTHORS
Vice President of Institute of Mathematics and Arts of São
Paulo. Architect and Computational Artist. Researcher of Art
Department at Universidade de Brasilia.
Tania Fraga

30. 2006IMATech – OCA
OFICINA DE CRIATIVIDADE ABERTA