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Scratch as a Tool to Promote Computational Thinking in Technological

Education

Chapter · October 2023

DOI: 10.1007/978-981-99-5414-8_48

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 Scratch as a tool to promote computational thinking in
technological education.

Aracelly Núñez-Naranjo 1 , José Luis-Masabanda , Elizabeth Morales-Urrutia, José

Manuel Gómez Goitia

[email protected]*, [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

1 Universidad Indoamérica, Universidad Indoamérica, Facultad de Ciencias de la Educación,

Carrera de Educación Básica, Ecuador, Ec180103, Ambato, Ecuador
2 Universidad Indoamérica, Maestría en Educación con mención Pedagogía en Entornos Digita-
les, Ecuador, Ec180103, Ambato, Ecuador
3 . Universidad Técnica de Ambato, Ecuador, 182020, Ambato, Ecuador
4 Universidad Indoamérica, Maestría en Educación con mención Pedagogía en Entornos Digita-
les, Ecuador, Ec180103, Ambato, Ecuador

Abstract. The objective of this work is to improve computational thinking

through the approach of algorithms in Scratch, thus giving a solution to the main
problem detected, which is the case of knowledge of digital tools as a means for
the development of computational thinking, this has led to the creation of a mo-
bile application that teaches programming in Scratch. For the study, a mixed
methodology with qualitative and quantitative approaches was used, and a pre-
test and a post-test based on exercises were applied to measure computational
thinking. The following results were obtained as a starting point with the pretest,
a value of 6.81, and at the end of the practice with the mobile application, the
post-test assessment was 7.86, demonstrating a positive effect on the develop-
ment of computational thinking. Therefore, it is concluded that the algorithms
and the Scratch tool motivated the students and stimulated the development of
computational thinking.

Keywords: computational thinking, mobile app, education,

educational.
2

1.1 Introduction

At present, there are various computational platforms that allow the development of
programming learning or the generation of computational thinking. One of them
corresponds to Scratch that was developed by the "Lifelong Kindergarten group" in the
Media Lab of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as a visual programming
language for children 6 years and older. Scratch is a free application that can run on
Windows, Mac, and Linux platforms [1], in such a way that, it is necessary that the
educational processes in their technological development achieve new learning
environments as this allows an update of the teaching process in the communicative
environment.

[2] In his study, he mentions that teaching programming to children has generated great
interest worldwide, so some authors indicate that one of the main benefits of teaching
programming to children is to develop their computational thinking.
The most appropriate definition of computational thinking is the one given by [3],
"Computational thinking consists of solving problems, designing systems, and under-
standing human behavior using the fundamental concepts of computing", pág 12 [4].

For [5] the teaching of programming is done taking advantage of the didactic environ-
ment of the different applications, one of them is Scratch since it is a trend for teaching
programming under the parameters in which it is involved. with concepts such as se-
quential structures, iterations, conditionals, variables, functions and parallel processes.
An approach used to teach programming to children is to use Scratch [6]. The Scratch
tool seeks to open a space between logic and creativity, so the role of the teacher is to
change the concept methodological: where learning becomes a process, and the teacher
must generate logical processes that promote cognitive development, this goes beyond
person-computer interaction, it seeks the relationship of social development and group
work; that is, connected learning [7].

According to [8] in Ecuador, "educational experiences on computational thinking are

few and isolated, mainly related to the use of Scratch" (p. 21) and the development of
students in the different fields has not been established through research. educational
levels: initial, basic and baccalaureate in the skills that make up the Academic Curric-
ulum, for the Ministry of Education in 2008, according to what was mentioned by [9]
"It is necessary that educational institutions not only teach the use and management of
digital tools, but teach students to "be competent in technology", pag. 463.

The present investigation arises from the application of a pretest, in which it is identi-
fied that the students have a regular level in terms of reasoning, analysis and decision-
making in problem solving since they obtain an average grade of 6.81 in the pretest.
The Test applied is based on determining the level of Computational Thinking from
 3

which 20 questions have been selected. It should be noted that this test has been vali-
dated and used in different investigations, one of which is the Computational Thinking
Test: design principles, validation of content and analysis of items prepared by [10].

The research seeks to develop computational thinking in upper-level students of 9th

and 10th year of basic general education, it should be noted that they mechanically
handle the Scratch program at a basic level, in addition, according to the initial evalua-
tion, they have little logical thinking which is identified by seeing them solve exercises
and problems.

In current education, the development of new skills, abilities and skills is of the utmost
importance for students through different technological tools, which help to create an
optimal educational environment in this way, students are motivated and obtain signif-
icant learning.

2. Literature review
In the review of the literature that described below, it has been identified that they use
Scratch as a tool to introduce programming to both children and adolescents, which
allows them to increase their ability to think and analyze through the practice of solving
problems. different algorithms.

In the research of the [11], about the development of computational thinking in primary
education: an educational experience with Scratch seeks to evaluate the feasibility of
the development of Computational Thinking (PC) of 6th grade students, who lack com-
putational knowledge prior to the study, through projects made with the Scratch tool.
In this work has been done on the design and development of various activities that
make up the Beginner's Guide to Scratch. Finally, the CP has been evaluated through
the "Computational Thinking Test" (TPC) designed and verified by [11], as well as
with other evaluation instruments such as the reflection tables contained in the Guide
itself and the Dr. .Scratch. The results obtained are positive, especially with regard to
the acquisition of computational concepts that establish the basis of the PC, such as the
repetition of programs, directions or simple functions, which has allowed us to obtain
favorable conclusions for the study [12].

Likewise, in the research study developed by [13]"Scratch, technology used as a tool

to improve logical and algorithmic reasoning skills in school-age children", pag. 15,
they state that within the new generation of digital native students , Scratch is a learning
tool used as an interesting and motivating resource which focuses on the development
of the student's logic, this being an essential skill within this digital age, as well as
developing computational thinking based on conditions and solutions clearly. intuitive,
implementing purely mathematical knowledge such as coordinates, variables, algo-
rithms, among others.
4

In the research "Practical experiences with the use of the Scratch Programming Lan-
guage to Develop the Algorithmic Thinking of Students in Chile" prepared by [14] for
the human being, the growth of logical thinking is relevant since it contributes in the
analysis and solution of problems which are related to computational thinking in its
structure, on the other hand, help to solve situations of daily life where it is necessary
to propose a logical and algorithmic solution to the problem. Programming languages
like Scratch facilitate forms of learning such as e-learning and t-learning which stimu-
late logical and algorithmic thinking.

For [15] student competencies related to computational thinking are necessary to reduce
the digital and educational gap in countries, providing new ways of understanding the
world where technology does not stop.

3. Methodology
For the development of the proposal, it has been decided to work with the Mobile-D
methodology since [16] argue that the Mobile-D methodology is based on well-known
but strictly applied methodologies such as: Extreme Programming (XP), Crystal Meth-
odologies and Rational Unified Process. XP for development practices, Crystal for scal-
ing methods, and RUP as the foundation for lifecycle design.

According to [16] the Mobile-D (see Fig. 1) methodology is divided into five phases,
these being: exploration, initialization, production, stabilization and testing.

Fig.1 Mobile-D methodology

4. Proposal

This proposal has been developed and implemented by the authors as part of a titling
project, it is being used by eighth and ninth grade students of an educational center for
basic and secondary education in the city of Ambato.

Explore

In this phase, the different resources, elements and criteria have been established ac-
cording to the needs for the development of the mobile application.

In this phase, it is also defined how the theme of algorithms will be implemented, fo-
cused on the different activities and exercises with respect to each topic, in addition,
video tutorials are established on the different exercises on cycles and conditional struc-
tures within the different blocks that the scratch tool.
 5

Initialize Phase

In this phase, the technological tools with which work has been done in the develop-
ment of the proposal are specified. It is important to indicate that an analysis of possible
tools was previously carried out according to their characteristics and the ones detailed
below have been selected, based on their uses and possible applications.

These tools are found in the mobile application developed for the study, which
can be accessed through the following link:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/12YGur2WLrb8Ba4I9lLv5flaorQGJiHSH/view?usp=s
hare_link

Table 1. Description of digital tools

Application Characteristics
MIT App Tool used to create the application, it is focused on creating applica-
Inventor tions for mobile devices, through the use of different commands,
which are used to create an interface and link with other tools.
Livework- Tool that allows to apply tests or activities in an interactive online
sheets way, this tool is used for the application of the computational thinking
test in an easy and entertaining way for students.
Padlet Board-type tool for collaborative work, it is used to give access to a
discussion forum for students, allows interaction and information
sharing.
QR Code Tool that generates images with QR codes which allow linking with
Generator activities by scanning with a device Tool that generates images with
QR codes which allow linking with activities by scanning with a mo-
bile device, allows access to the computational thinking test , algo-
rithms among others.
Google It is the most important tool within the application, which will store
Drive the activities carried out by the students, having access to it by any
user.
Scratch Tool used in the proposal for the creation, design and development of
different algorithmic projects in which students develop computa-
tional thinking.
YouTube Application that supports video tutorials on different study topics, al-
lowing these to be viewed as many times as necessary to reinforce
learning.
Blue- It is an emulator that helps to install mobile applications on a PC op-
Stacks erating system.

Productionize

In this phase, the implementation of the didactic material has been carried out through
the use of the detailed tools, these are used according to the planned topics and activi-
ties.
6

With the MIT APP INVENTOR tool, the design and interface of the product was de-
veloped.

Stabilize Phase

In this phase, the integration of academic resources in the application is carried out in
order to ensure that the system works correctly. The mobile application contains a main
page, Fig 2., which includes images, text, video tutorial, discussion forum, and infor-
mation from the creator of the mobile app.

Fig.2. Application deployment screen

Through the different codes, tools such as YouTube, Padlet, Liveworksheets, Google
drive were linked to each of the App Inventor work tables. (Fig. 3)All of these helped
for the different activities proposed within the content to be studied..

Fig.3 Implementation screens of the app "Learn with Scratch"

System, Test and Fix

Version 1.0 of the "APRENDE_SCRACTH" application has been designed with a sim-
ple and easy-to-use interface, it is available for any mobile device or tablet that has an
android operating system, it can also be installed on any computer with the help of the
BlueStacks emulator.
 7

In this phase, performance tests have been carried out with the 8th and 9th grade stu-
dents (see Fig. 4)of an educational institution in the city of Ambato, and once the ap-
plication has met the technical requirements, the use of the application in the classes of
the computing subject carrying out 12 work sessions.

Fig.4 Use of mobile application by students

5. Results

The proposal has been worked with 21 students between 8th and 9th grade and ini-
tially, the main descriptive statistics were obtained; As it is a sample of less than 50
elements, the Shapiro Wilk parametric test was applied, determining that both the Pre-
test and the Posttest do not have normality in the scores obtained by the students. For
the study, the calculations have been made with the SPSS Software.
Table 2. Descriptive

N Media Mediana DE EE

Pretest 21 6.69 7.00 0.968 0.211

Postest 21 7.69 7.50 0.558 0.122

Table 3. Normality Test (Shapiro-Wilk)

W P

Pretest 0.869 0.009

Postest 0.899 0.034

Note. A low p-value suggests a violation of the normality assumption.

Once the non-normality of the data has been determined, the Wilcoxon statistic is used,
establishing a p_value < 0.01, which establishes the existence of a significant improve-
ment in the scores obtained by the students in the Pretest and Posttest; on the other
hand, when obtaining (1.00) the effect size is stipulated as large.

Table 4. T Student
 8

T test in a sample
95% confidence
interval
Statistical p Difference lower upper effect
of means size
Pretest W de 231 < . 001 6.75 6.25 Inf biseriate rank 1.00
Wilcoxon mapping
Postest W de 231 < . 001 7.75 7.50 inf biseriate rank 1.00
Wilcoxon mapping

6. Conclusions

Computational thinking was quantified through a 20-item pretest based on algorithms

made up of cycles and conditionals. After the corresponding tabulation, the results in-
dicate a regular level at a general level, obtaining a score of 6.5.

The content structure was based on the approach and implementation of projects based
on algorithm exercises based on conditionals, loops and cycles, which were taught as
video tutorials, textual content, examples and shared activities these were developed in
12 sessions and were oriented towards solving algorithms through practical exercises
through Scratch.

A mobile application developed in MIT app Inventor was implemented, which contrib-
utes to the learning and use of the Scratch tool, allowing students to learn to solve al-
gorithms in a fun way in an easy-to-use digital environment, generating motivation and
contributing to the development of the computational thinking.
From the use of the "learn with scratch" proposal, the development of computational
thinking is evident, since from the Wilcoxon statistical analysis carried out on the re-
sults of the application of the pretest and posttest, a p value < 0.01 was obtained, which
establishes the existence of a significant improvement on the other hand, when obtain-
ing a (1.00) in the effect size is stipulated as large.

As future work, it is intended to continue using the mobile application, but the edu-
cational institution will be requested to start using it from the 4th year of basic education
in order to determine its incidence in the development of computational thinking.

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