Developing knowledge of computational thinking concepts in students with learning disabilities: A case study

This instrumental case study aimed to examine the effectiveness of a specialized computational thinking curriculum for students with diverse learning needs. The curriculum was developed using the TIPP&SEE metacognitive strategy, which stands for Title, Instructions, Purpose, Play, and Sprite, Events, Explore. This strategy has been successfully implemented for teaching computer science to elementary students using Scratch, a free online block-based programming tool. During a six-lesson curriculum implementation, the development of computational thinking concepts such as events, sequences, parallelism, and loops was closely examined in two middle school students with specific learning disabilities. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, tests on computational thinking concepts, session journals, and TIPP&SEE worksheets. Findings indicated that participants developed their knowledge of computational thinking concepts at different rates, likely due to varying levels of engagement and individual disabilities. The analysis also revealed that participants struggled with checkbox table questions involving more than two sprites and options. Additionally, students developed misconceptions about a sprite's costumes, and presenting the costumes in multiple ways helped address this issue. Qualitative data suggested that using the OpenDyslexic font improved participants' reading fluency. This study provided recommendations for designing and implementing computational thinking curricula for students with diverse needs, which is essential to promote equity in education.