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What they learn when they learn coding: investigating cognitive domains and computer programming knowledge in young children

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Abstract

Computer programming for young children has grown in popularity among both educators and product developers, but still relatively little is known about what skills children are developing when they code. This study investigated N = 57 Kindergarten through second grade children’s performance on a programming assessment after engaging in a 6-week curricular intervention. Children used the ScratchJr programming tool to create animated stories, collages, and games. At the end of the learning intervention, children were assessed on their knowledge of the ScratchJr language and underlying reasoning. Specifically, we explored children’s errors on the assessment to determine evidence of domain-specific reasoning (e.g. mathematic, verbal, causal). Results show that while all students mastered foundational coding concepts, there were marked differences in performance and comprehension across the three grade levels. Interpretation of results suggests a developmental progression inherent in programming knowledge acquisition.; Implications for computer programming education and developmental research are discussed.

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Acknowledgements

This work was generously funded by the National Science Foundation Grant No. DRL-1118664.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. DevTech Research Group, Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study and Human Development, Tufts University, 105 College Ave, Medford, MA, 02155, USA

    Amanda Strawhacker & Marina Umaschi Bers

Authors
  1. Amanda Strawhacker
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  2. Marina Umaschi Bers
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Correspondence to Amanda Strawhacker.

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Appendices

Appendix A: Answer key for Solve It tasks

figure o

Appendix B: Scoring rubric for Solve It tasks

ScratchJr Solve-Its scoring rubric: sets of blocks

For every question, there is a bank of correct answers. Responses will be scored based on how close they are to some correct answer from that bank.

  1. 1.

    How scoring will be assessed

    1. a.

      A score of 0 is perfect

    2. b.

      If there is a correct block that is missed, that is 1 point

    3. c.

      If there is an incorrect block that was added, that is 1 point

  2. 2.

    Instances with responses that are “more correct” based on block similarity

    1. a.

      There is a key of “similar” blocks. If a student missed a correct block and used an incorrect but similar block, that is 1 point (not 2)

  3. 3.

    Instances with more than 1 correct answer

    1. a.

      There is a key of correct block sets for all questions. The response will be compared against every set. The lowest of these possible scores will be counted.

    2. b.

      Ex: Correct Program A = Green Flag, Show, Hide, Message Block

      Correct Program B = Green Flag, Show, Hide, Wait Block

      Submitted Response = Green flag, Show, Hide, Stop

Score and Justification:

The submitted response will receive a score of 1 based on Program B, because the Stop block is similar to the Wait block.

They would have received a score of 2 based on Program A, because the Message Block was missing, and the non-similar Stop block was added.

Similar blocks key

  • Jump replaced by Up + Down (1 point)

  • Grow + Shrink replace by Hide + Show (2 points)

  • Added End block or Go Home at end of program when it would make no change (0 points)

  • Used go home in place of last block when it is incorrect, but the character does end up “at home”, i.e. in Sol2 (1 point)

  • No Response = total points missed. Do not scrap this data, could mean child did not understand the question

  • Move Right replaced by Go Home in Q6 (gave 2 points)

ScratchJr Solve-Its scoring rubric: sequences of blocks

For every question, there is a bank of correct answers. Responses will be scored based on how close they are to any correct answer from that bank.

  1. 1.

    How scoring will be assessed

    1. a.

      A score of 0 is perfect

    2. b.

      All rules of “set” scoring still apply

    3. c.

      Sequences will be broken into “chunks” of blocks that represent different functions of a program (i.e. begin and ending chunks, action chunks, control-flow chunks)

  1. 2.

    Scoring Chunks

    1. a.

      If the blocks that comprise a chunk are incorrectly ordered, that is 1 point

    2. b.

      If the chunk is incorrectly ordered relative to other chunks, that is 1 point

    3. c.

      If there is a chunk that is missing, that is 1 point

    4. d.

      If there is a chunk that is incorrectly added, that is 1 point

  1. 3.

    Instances with incorrect sets of blocks

    1. a.

      For blocks that are incorrect but similar to the correct block (according to similarity key), those blocks count towards the chunk that the correct block would have filled.

    2. b.

      For blocks that are incorrect and dissimilar from the correct block, they are counted as an incorrectly added chunk.

  1. 4.

    General Rules of Chunks:

    1. a.

      Begin blocks need to be at the beginning

    2. b.

      End blocks need to be at the end

    3. c.

      Chunks with more than one block need to have blocks in the correct order (1 point if wrong) and need to be adjacent (1 point is separated)

    4. d.

      Control Flow block must operate on a block to its right (1 point if there no motion block after it)

    5. e.

      Character blocks need to be associated with a single program (anywhere inside or very near is fine). If characters are in the incorrect program, or if they are not associated with a program, that is 1 point.

      1. 1.

        To determine if the characters are “flipped,” score each program for each character. Whichever yields the lower score is the pair of response that is accepted. If the character blocks are incorrectly matched based on the accepted response, that is 1 point.

  • Question 4b: Rules of Chunks

    • Start Chunk

      • Start block must go at the beginning of the program (1 point if in incorrect location)

    • Action Chunk

      • 2 action blocks must be adjacent (1 point if not adjacent)

      • 2 action blocks must be in correct order (1 point if incorrectly ordered)

    • End Chunk

      • End block must go at the end of the program (1 point if in incorrect location)

      • End block must be Go To Page 2 (1 point if similar end blocks is used instead)

  • Question 5b: Rules of Chunks

    • Cat Program – Start Chunk

      • Start block must go at the beginning of the program (1 point if in incorrect location)

    • Cat Program—End Chunk

      • End block must go at the end of the program (1 point if in incorrect location)

      • Special block: If there is no End block, that is 2 points. See Rubric Justifications.

    • Pig Program—Start Chunk

      • Start block must go at the beginning of the program (1 point if in incorrect location)

      • Special Block: If there is no Start block, that is 2 points. See Rubric Justifications.

    • Pig Program – Action Chunk

      • 2 action blocks must be adjacent (1 point if not adjacent)

      • 2 action blocks must be in correct order (1 point if incorrectly ordered)

    • Character Chunk

      • Character chunks must be associated with (adjacent or very near) one of the programs (1 point each for missing characters)

      • Ambiguous Character-Program Pairs:

        • Score each program for each character. Whichever yields the lower score is the pair of response that is accepted (Ex: Cat + A = 12, Cat + B = 5; Pig is same for both. B is Cat’s program, A is Pig’s program). If the character blocks are incorrectly matched based on the accepted response, that is 1 point.

  • Question 6b: Rules of Chunks

    • Start Chunk

      • Start block must go at the beginning of the program (1 point if in incorrect location)

    • Action Chunk

      • 3 action blocks must be adjacent (1 point if not adjacent)

      • 3 action blocks must be in correct order (1 point if incorrectly ordered)

      • Speed block must operate on a block to its right (1 point if there no motion block after Speed in this chunk)

      • Special Block: If there is no Speed block, that is 2 points. See Rubric Justifications

    • End Chunk

      • End block must go at the end of the program (1 point if in incorrect location)

        • NOTE: in this program, the “Go Home” block is functionally the End block. No similar blocks will be accepted if missing, although adding an End block will not affect set or sequence score.

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Strawhacker, A., Bers, M.U. What they learn when they learn coding: investigating cognitive domains and computer programming knowledge in young children. Education Tech Research Dev 67, 541–575 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-018-9622-x

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