Unit:
Κατεύθυνση Τεχνολογίες της Πληροφορίας και της Επικοινωνίας για την ΕκπαίδευσηLibrary of the School of Education
Author:
Chatzigianni Georgia
Supervisors info:
Ραγκούση Μαρία Καθηγήτρια του Τμήματος Ηλεκτρολόγων και Ηλεκτρονικών Μηχανικών του Πανεπιστημίου Δυτικής Αττικής
Original Title:
“Οι μαθητές Δημοτικού Σχολείου σε ρόλο δημιουργών παιχνιδιών : εκπαιδευτική παρέμβαση με βάση το Scratch”
Translated title:
“Primary School Students in the role of game creators : educational intervention based on scratch”
Summary:
In the context of this thesis we investigated the acquisition of basic computer programming
skills through the Scratch programming environment. More specifically, we carried out a study
using the Scratch program based on a game-like application developed for use by students in
a fifth grade.
Scratch is a programming environment specifically designed to aid in learning programming.
It is especially suitable for children and beginners, thanks to the development of computational
/ programming thinking through various elements.
The particular application developed for this thesis is related to the mathematics course – a
subject which for most children is quite interesting and yet demanding and challenging. Our
approach here was through a game-like activity. Games are constantly used in learning to help
the teaching process. The reason this happens is because the benefits of using them are many.
Every type of game is directly connected to the social relationships of children, which will help
them in their later life.
The game-like activity developed here was based on the scenario of a circulating bus, and
involved two players, a father and his son. The father asked his son mathematical questions
and depending on the answer, correct or incorrect, the course of the bus changed each time.
After this application was presented and used in class, the children were invited to create their
own similar “game” activity, through Scratch. They worked divided into small groups. They
had thus been able to discover the benefits of collaborative learning. When this teaching
method is used, students learn to cooperate with each other and continuously develop social
and other skills.
Through the questionnaire that was distributed to the students after the intervention with the
ready-made game and the creation of their own games, we were able to draw useful
conclusions, which are analyzed in the context of this work.
Main subject category:
Technology - Computer science
Keywords:
Scratch, computational thinking, programming thinking, computer programming, collaborative learning, educational game, learning, learning methods
