Basawapatna, A. R., Repenning, A., & Lewis, C. H. (2013, March). The simulation creation toolkit: An initial exploration into making programming accessible while preserving computational thinking. In Proceeding of the 44th ACM technical symposium on Computer Science Education (SIGSCE '13)(pp. 501-506), Denver, CO:ACM.

Summary

Type: Empirical

Purpose: The purpose of this study was incorporate The Simulation Creation Toolkit as a strategy to use high-level Computational Thinking Patterns in creating simulations in the classroom.

Findings: 1. "Programming at the Computational Thinking Pattern level is an important avenue for investigation into simulation creation in the classroom" (p. 505). 2. 77% of the students would have finished the simulation if given a 4th day 3. 80% of students correctly implemented the first 8 patterns. (There were 16 patterns in total).

Recommendations: 1. More research on a larger scale must be conducted to determine if the Simulation Creation Toolkit is an effective strategy to integrate computational thinking concepts in the classroom. 2. More patterns and specifications should be added to the user interface

Methodology

Sample Size: 39

Participant Type: Two 6th grade classrooms over 3 days

Notes: All students had no prior programming experience before the start of this study.