The effects of block-based visual programming on mathematical problem solving and computational thinking

Abstract

The study investigated whether students spent more time and resources on other aspects of mathematical problem solving when computers reduced their computational load. It was also investigated whether those students using the computational environment would show improvements in their computational thinking. A four-step framework of problem-solving Wolfram recommended suggests computers doing the computations would give more opportunity for the problem solver to concentrate on other traditionally less emphasized steps. In order to investigate Wolfram’s idea, 32 seventh and 36 eighth grade students were selected from an urban secondary school and randomly assigned to four different groups, namely the seventh-grade control group, the eighth-grade control group, the seventh grade experimental group, and the eighth-grade experimental group. Experimental groups used block-based visual programming software to solve the given problems, while control groups used paper and pencil to solve the given problems. It was also expected that using the computational environment would reflect in the experimental group’s computational thinking scores. Before the treatment was conducted, all participants were given the same block-based visual programming training to eliminate the training factor. The results showed that, as expected, experimental groups, who used block-based visual programming software for formulation and calculation, spent most of their time in formulating the problems and very little time for calculations. The control groups, on the other hand, spent most of their time in calculating the problems and relatively less time for formulation.