Improving Computational Thinking.

 

I plan to return to the idea of suggested games for students to play over the summer but I got diverted with the idea of helping students improve their computational thinking.  Computational thinking is defined as an interrelated set of skills and practices needed to solve complex problems.  A good definition for students is that computational thinking is learning to think like a computer or breaking your data down into a form a computer can use.

Although we often associate computational thinking with math, it can be applied to any subject. It is just learning to rearrange your thoughts logically.  Computational thinking is composed of four parts, decomposition, pattern recognition, abstraction, and the algorithm. 

Decomposition refers to breaking the problem down into smaller, more manageable parts. This is something we do everyday when we clean house, work on a project, or build something.  If we clean house, we break it down into smaller tasks such as starting with the kitchen.  We might rinse dishes and load the dishwasher, clean the sink, the area around the sink, etc.  We break the whole task into a step by step process.

Pattern recognition is just what it sounds, learning to recognize the patterns we see. In order to break things down, it is helpful to recognize the patterns.  In math, we do it all the time but it happens in other subjects such as in foreign languages, we learn endings based on the type of words and the case or tense.  The world is made up of patterns so it is important for students to learn to identify the patterns.

Abstraction is the ability to cut through all the information available to select only that which is important.  It is like reading a mystery and sorting through clues to separate the red herrings from the actual clues. In life, it would be like going to the store and only buying what is on the grocery list rather than what ever appeals to us.  In math, it would be like reading word problems and taking only the things we need to solve the problem.

Finally is coming up with the algorithms. Algorithms are the step by step instructions to do something.  We follow an algorithm when we get dressed, when we follow a recipe to cook, or follow that plan to make a bookcase.  In math, the algorithm is the process we follow to find the equation of a line from two points, or solve two simultaneous linear equations, and more.

Although we associate computational thinking with math, science, or computers, it is actually found in just about every subject, and life in general.  It is a skill used when we plan research papers, manage projects, figure out which work to delegate to whom to get it done. 

Now that computational thinking has been broken down, the next step is to discuss how to teach it since this is an important enough subject to teach to all grades and all students.  So next week, I'll tackle the topic of discussing how to teach it.  Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear.  Have a great day.