Teaching computational thinking and its effects on children's executive functions

La enseñanza del pensamiento computacional y sus efectos sobre las funciones ejecutivas de los niños

Published 2024-07-01

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Vol. 21 No. 42 (2024): Estructura cristalina del superconductor
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Teaching computational thinking and its effects on children’s executive functions. (2024). Revista EIA, 21(42), 4215 pp. 1-21. https://doi.org/10.24050/reia.v21i42.1740
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Carolina Robledo Castro
Universidad del Tolima, Colombia
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Luz Helena Rodríguez Rodríguez
Universidad del Tolima, Colombia
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Luis Fernando Castillo Ossa
Universidad de Caldas, Universidad Nacional de Colombia Sede Manizales, Colombia
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Teaching computational thinking in K-12 education has gained notable prominence in recent years. The main objective of these initiatives is not to teach programming from childhood but to strengthen the ability to reason, solve problems, and develop cognitive processes. For this reason, studying the cognitive effects and impacts that teaching computational thinking has on students has become a field of action with multiple challenges. Seeking to contribute to this new field of study, this pilot test evaluated the effect of a computational thinking training program on the executive functions of school-age children. The results showed that the intervention in computational thinking improved some tasks associated with the executive functions of inhibition, visuospatial working memory, and planning.

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