Computational Thinking in K—12: A Review of the State of the Field

• Published in: Educational researcher Vol. 42; no. 1; pp. 38 - 43
• Main Authors: Grover, Shuchi, Pea, Roy
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01.01.2013; American Educational Research Association
• Subjects: Abstract Reasoning; Children; Cognition; Cognition & reasoning; Computation; Computer programming; Computer science; Computer science education; Discourse analysis; Education policy; Educational Research; Elementary Secondary Education; Learning; Literacy; Mathematics; Mathematics education; Problem Solving; Programming; REVIEWS/ESSAYS; Scholarly publishing; School age children; Secondary education; Secondary school curricula; STEM Education; Thinking Skills; computational thinking; student cognition; computers and learning; learning environments; K–12 curricula; computational literacy; STEM learning; problem solving; technology; computing education
• ISSN: 0013-189X; 1935-102X
• DOI: 10.3102/0013189X12463051

Jeannette Wing's influential article on computational thinking 6 years ago argued for adding this new competency to every child's analytical ability as a vital ingredient of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) learning. What is computational thinking? Why did this article resonate with so many and serve as a rallying cry for educators, education researchers, and policy makers? How have they interpreted Wing's definition, and what advances have been made since Wing's article was published? This article frames the current state of discourse on computational thinking in K—12 education by examining mostly recently published academic literature that uses Wing's article as a springboard, identifies gaps in research, and articulates priorities for future inquiries.