Fostering Computational Thinking in Compulsory Education in Europe: A Multiple Case Study

Abstract. Many European countries have revised their curricula in recent years, introducing basic computer science concepts. This has paved the way for developing students’ computational thinking (CT) skills. Despite increasing uptake, several issues and challenges are emerging for the effective integration of CT skills in compulsory education. The purpose of this paper is to examine the rationale for integrating CT skills in the European primary and lower secondary education curricula and the enablers and barriers to teaching and assessing these skills. A wide range of evidence was collected through three multiple-case studies involving 40 semi-structured interviews with experts, policymakers, school leaders and teachers, and 10 focus groups with students. Thematic analysis was conducted on 3,424 excerpts through NVivo to identify recurring codes and themes regarding implementation of CT skills within the curriculum in nine European countries and to explore commonalities and patterns across the cases. A common enabler is adopting appropriate measures for creating guidelines, learning materials and a large-scale professional development program. On the barrier side, the lack of qualified teachers, lack of quality materials and the challenges related to large-scale upskilling are shared.