Exploring authentic-empathetic programming abilities and its impacts on learners’ computational thinking skills

Abstract

This study explores the impact of authentic-empathetic programming abilities on learners’ computational thinking skills at the senior high school level. The study adopted the mixed-methods approach specifically the embedded non-experimental design to achieve its objectives. The convenient sampling technique was used to get a sample size of 257 participants comprising elective ICT learners from six senior high schools in Ghana. Closed and open-ended questionnaire were used to collect data. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data collected using SPSS and AMOS. The major findings of this study were that, the sub-constructs of authenticempathetic programming (authenticity in programming, empathy in programming, selfefficacy in programming, reflection and metacognition and engagement and motivation) in linear combination had positive impact on learners’ computational thinking skills. However, the authenticity in programming construct had a negative impact on learners’ computational thinking skills, indicating a need for further investigation. The study also revealed some challenges that learners faced with the implementation of authentic-empathetic programming strand of the computing curriculum. Based on the findings of the research some recommendations were made. These include; improving technology resources, industry collaboration and practical experience, and integrating practical real-world programming activities into the curriculum to better relate programming tasks to real-world problems. This study highlighted the connection between authentic-empathetic programming abilities and computational skills and thus, contributes to the contextual understanding of this connection in the computing curriculum.