Threshold concepts have been characterised in the literature as jewels in the curriculum as they can inform teaching and learning practices. Therefore, identifying and addressing threshold concepts in any discipline is critical. The aim of the current study is to explore the existence of threshold concepts in computer programming and specifically…

Many physical devices supporting the learning of programming and digital making are now available which have the potential to make learning fun, accessible and creative for children and young adults. The advent of this new technology necessitates research to inform pedagogical approaches that work in the classroom. We carried out a study which…

Research indicates that understanding levels of abstraction (LOA) and being able to move between the levels is essential to programming success. For K-5 contexts LOA levels have been named: problem, design, code and running the code. In a qualitative exploratory study, five K-5 teachers were interviewed on their uses of LOA, particularly the…

Research indicates that understanding levels of abstraction (LOA) and being able to move between the levels is essential to programming success. For K-5 contexts we rename the LOA levels: problem, design, code and running the code. In our qualitative exploratory study, we interviewed five K-5 teachers on their uses of LOA, particularly the design…

Background and Context: Vygotsky's sociocultural theory emphasises the importance of language, mediation, and the transfer of skills and knowledge from the social into the cognitive plane. This perspective has influenced the development of PRIMM (Predict, Run, Investigate, Modify, Make), a structured approach to teaching programming. Objective:…