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Examining the Experiences of Preschoolers on Programming via Tablet Computers

Year 2017, Volume: 7 Issue: 1, 193 - 203, 30.06.2017

Abstract

The purpose of this study was twofold. Firstly, the reactions of children aged 5-6 were analyzed in their efforts to use an application aimed at teaching the basics of programming concepts (i.e., sequencing, loops, conditions) on tablet computers. Secondly, the researchers reported on the implications of the approaches during the delivery of programming education to preschool children. A four-week, design-based study was conducted with 20 preschool children. During this study, as the children used a tablet application their reactions were observed and they were also asked to share their views and experiences. There were times when the children met with difficulties and needed adult assistance. If they felt a sense of failure or inadequacy during their engagement with advanced parts of the program, they displayed signs of boredom. Those children who had difficulty asked for help from others who had succeeded. The researchers also monitored the phases which other children had reached and who perceived the implementation as a competition. The boys seemed to be more confident in the application phases. The results of the study indicate that for young children to successfully use tablets for programming, initial training in the use of tablets that incorporate concrete activities and basic programming instruction under non-distracting conditions are needed.

References

  • Akpınar Y. & Altun A. (2014). “Bilgi Toplumu Okullarında Programlama Eğitimi Gereksinimi”. İlköğretim Online 13/1 (2014) 1-4.
  • Bayhan P., Olgun P. & Yelland N. J. (2002). “A Study of Pre-School Teachers’ Thoughts About Computer Assisted İnstruction”. Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood 3/2 (2002) 298-303. doi.org/10.2304/ciec.2002.3.2.11
  • Bergin D. A., Ford M. E. & Hess R. D. (1993). “Patterns of Motivation and Social Behavior Associated with Microcomputer Use of Young Children”. Journal of Educational Psychology 85 /3 (1993) 437-445.
  • Bers M. U., Ponte I., Juelich C., Viera A. & Schenker J. (2002). “Teachers as Designers: Integrating Robotics in Early Childhood Education”. Information Technology in Childhood Education Annual 2002 1 (2002) 123-145.
  • Clements D. H. & Gullo D. F. (1984). “Effects of Computer Programming on Young Children's Cognition”. Journal of Educational Psychology 76/6 (1984) 1051-1058.
  • Clements D. H. (1999). “The Future of Educational Computing Research: The Case of Computer Programming”. Information Technology in Childhood Education Annual 1999 1 (1999) 147-179.
  • Clements D. H., Nastasi B. K. & Swaminathan S. (1993). “Young Children and Computers: Crossroads and Directions From Research”. Young Children 48/2 (1993) 56-64.
  • Collins A., Joseph D. & Bielaczyc K. (2004). “Design Research: Theoretical and Methodological Issues”. Journal of the Learning Sciences 13/1 (2004) 15-42.
  • Cooper S., Bookey L. & Gruenbaum P. (2014). “Future Directions in Computing Education Summit Part One: Important Computing Education Research Questions, Technical Report CS‐TR‐14‐0108‐SC, Stanford University”. Retrieved January 15, 2017 from http://ilpubs.stanford.edu:8090/1117/
  • Fessakis G., Gouli E. & Mavroudi E. (2013). “Problem Solving by 5-6 Years Old Kindergarten Children in a Computer Programming Environment: A Case Study”. Computers & Education 63 (2013) 87-97.
  • Freeman N. K. & Somerindyke J. (2001). “Social Play at the Computer: Preschoolers Scaffold and Support Peers’ Computer Competence”. Information Technology in Childhood Education Annual 1 (2001) 203-213.
  • Furber S. (2012). Shut Down Or Restart: The Way Forward for Computing in UK Schools. London 2012.
  • García-Peñalvo F. J., Rees A. M., Hughes J., Jormanainen I., Toivonen T. & Vermeersch J. (2016). “A Survey of Resources for Introducing Coding into Schools”. Ed. F. J. García-Peñalvo, Proceedings of the Fourth International Conference on Technological Ecosystems for Enhancing Multiculturality (TEEM’16) 2-4 (2016) 19-26. New York.
  • Harvey B. (1997). Computer Science Logo Style: Symbolic Computing. London 1997.
  • Kalelioğlu F. & Gülbahar Y. (2014). “The Effects of Teaching Programming Via Scratch on Problem Solving Skills: A Discussion From Learners’ Perspective”. Informatics in Education 13/1 (2014) 33-50.
  • Kazakoff E. R. & Bers M. (2012). “Programming in a Robotics Context in the Kindergarten Classroom: The Impact on Sequencing Skills”. Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia 21/4 (2012) 371-391.

Okul Öncesi Çocuklarının Tabletlerle Programlama Deneyimleri

Year 2017, Volume: 7 Issue: 1, 193 - 203, 30.06.2017

Abstract

Bu çalışmanın amacı 5-6 yaş çocuklarının programlama ile ilgili deneyimlerini incelemek ve programlama eğitimi uygulanmasındaki güçlükleri belirleyerek, dikkat edilmesi gereken hususları ortaya koymaktır. Bu amaçla, tasarım tabanlı araştırma yöntemi kullanılan bu araştırmada 20 kişiden oluşan bir anasınıfında hazırlık aşaması dâhil olmak üzere dört haftalık bir uygulama yürütülmüştür. Uygulamada, çocukların programlamanın temel kavramları olan sıralama, döngü ve şart konularını içeren bir tablet uygulaması ile zaman geçirmeleri sağlanmış ve bu program ve çevreleri ile olan etkileşimleri gözlemlenmiştir. Kaydedilen uygulama süreçleri, çocuklara uygulama sonunda sorulan sorular ve gözlem notları temel veri kaynaklarıdır. Uygulama sürecinde çocukların büyük ölçüde heyecanlı ve mutlu oldukları görülmüştür. Ancak, çocuklar başarısızlık duygusunu hissettiklerinde, zorlandıkları bölümlerde ya da benzer bir hedefin tekrarının çok olduğu bölümlerde sıkılma ifadeleri göstermişlerdir. Çocukların bir kısmı yardıma ihtiyaç duyduklarında arkadaşları ile iletişime geçmişler, yalnız çalışmaktansa iletişim halinde çalışmaya devam etmişler, yetişkinlerden yardım alamadıkları durumlarda akranları ile iletişim kurmuşlar ve yardım talebine bulunmuşlardır. Erkek çocuklar kız çocuklarına göre kendilerinden daha emin görünmüşlerdir. Çalışmanın sonuçları tabletle programlama eğitimi sürecinde, somut etkinliklerle yürütülen ön çalışmaların önemini vurgulamaktadır.

References

  • Akpınar Y. & Altun A. (2014). “Bilgi Toplumu Okullarında Programlama Eğitimi Gereksinimi”. İlköğretim Online 13/1 (2014) 1-4.
  • Bayhan P., Olgun P. & Yelland N. J. (2002). “A Study of Pre-School Teachers’ Thoughts About Computer Assisted İnstruction”. Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood 3/2 (2002) 298-303. doi.org/10.2304/ciec.2002.3.2.11
  • Bergin D. A., Ford M. E. & Hess R. D. (1993). “Patterns of Motivation and Social Behavior Associated with Microcomputer Use of Young Children”. Journal of Educational Psychology 85 /3 (1993) 437-445.
  • Bers M. U., Ponte I., Juelich C., Viera A. & Schenker J. (2002). “Teachers as Designers: Integrating Robotics in Early Childhood Education”. Information Technology in Childhood Education Annual 2002 1 (2002) 123-145.
  • Clements D. H. & Gullo D. F. (1984). “Effects of Computer Programming on Young Children's Cognition”. Journal of Educational Psychology 76/6 (1984) 1051-1058.
  • Clements D. H. (1999). “The Future of Educational Computing Research: The Case of Computer Programming”. Information Technology in Childhood Education Annual 1999 1 (1999) 147-179.
  • Clements D. H., Nastasi B. K. & Swaminathan S. (1993). “Young Children and Computers: Crossroads and Directions From Research”. Young Children 48/2 (1993) 56-64.
  • Collins A., Joseph D. & Bielaczyc K. (2004). “Design Research: Theoretical and Methodological Issues”. Journal of the Learning Sciences 13/1 (2004) 15-42.
  • Cooper S., Bookey L. & Gruenbaum P. (2014). “Future Directions in Computing Education Summit Part One: Important Computing Education Research Questions, Technical Report CS‐TR‐14‐0108‐SC, Stanford University”. Retrieved January 15, 2017 from http://ilpubs.stanford.edu:8090/1117/
  • Fessakis G., Gouli E. & Mavroudi E. (2013). “Problem Solving by 5-6 Years Old Kindergarten Children in a Computer Programming Environment: A Case Study”. Computers & Education 63 (2013) 87-97.
  • Freeman N. K. & Somerindyke J. (2001). “Social Play at the Computer: Preschoolers Scaffold and Support Peers’ Computer Competence”. Information Technology in Childhood Education Annual 1 (2001) 203-213.
  • Furber S. (2012). Shut Down Or Restart: The Way Forward for Computing in UK Schools. London 2012.
  • García-Peñalvo F. J., Rees A. M., Hughes J., Jormanainen I., Toivonen T. & Vermeersch J. (2016). “A Survey of Resources for Introducing Coding into Schools”. Ed. F. J. García-Peñalvo, Proceedings of the Fourth International Conference on Technological Ecosystems for Enhancing Multiculturality (TEEM’16) 2-4 (2016) 19-26. New York.
  • Harvey B. (1997). Computer Science Logo Style: Symbolic Computing. London 1997.
  • Kalelioğlu F. & Gülbahar Y. (2014). “The Effects of Teaching Programming Via Scratch on Problem Solving Skills: A Discussion From Learners’ Perspective”. Informatics in Education 13/1 (2014) 33-50.
  • Kazakoff E. R. & Bers M. (2012). “Programming in a Robotics Context in the Kindergarten Classroom: The Impact on Sequencing Skills”. Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia 21/4 (2012) 371-391.
There are 16 citations in total.

Details

Primary Language English
Subjects Educational Sociology
Journal Section Araştırma Makaleleri
Authors

Nuray Gedik This is me

Mustafa Çetin

Ceren Koca

Publication Date June 30, 2017
Published in Issue Year 2017 Volume: 7 Issue: 1

Cite

APA Gedik, N., Çetin, M., & Koca, C. (2017). Examining the Experiences of Preschoolers on Programming via Tablet Computers. Akdeniz İnsani Bilimler Dergisi, 7(1), 193-203.
Adres:
Akdeniz İnsani Bilimler Dergisi
Akdeniz Üniversitesi, Edebiyat Fakültesi
07058 Kampüs, Antalya / TÜRKİYE
E-Posta:
mjh@akdeniz.edu.tr