Self-Assessment of Computational Thinking Skill: A Scale Development Study

Abstract

This study aims to develop a valid and reliable scale to measure computational thinking skills in children aged between 11 and 13. The scale development process began with an in-depth literature review to determine the operational definition of computational thinking. In addition, 17 teachers working in the field were interviewed to determine how the concept is used in practice. Based on the literature and interview data, the dimensions of algorithmic thinking, abstraction, reusability, automation, generalization, parsing, and parallelization were identified as sub-dimensions of the draft scale. The item pool was initially set at 40 items, and the opinions of subject experts were sought for content and face validity. After this stage, the item pool was reduced to 36 items. The pilot study of the draft scale form was administered to a total of 272 students. After the pilot application of the draft scale form, exploratory factor analysis was first used in the analysis phase. When the factor relations of the scale were determined as a result of repeated analysis, 16 items were removed from the scale, leaving 20 items in the final form. Cronbach alpha for internal consistency and reliability values indicated sufficient reliability values. Confirmatory factor analysis was then used to check the validity of the factors obtained. The compatibility of the 5 factors obtained as a result of EFA with the items was tested in CFA. As a result of the analysis, five factors were obtained: algorithmic thinking (5 items), parallelization (5 items), decomposition (4 items), automation (3 items), and abstraction (3 items) scale structure consisting of 20 items.