Teaching Robotics with Problem Based Learning to Improve Students’ Computational Thinking Skills, Coding Skills and Positive Affects/Poučavanje robotike putem problemskoga učenja za poboljšanje vještina računalnoga razmišljanja, vještina kodiranja i

AbstractThis study aimed to examine the effect of the teaching of robotic coding designedaccording to the problem based learning (PBL) approach for secondary schoolstudents (11-12 ages) on their coding skills, computational thinking (CT) skills andpositive affects. This study used a ‘pretest-posttest quasi-experimental model withthe control group’ and the study group consisted of 178 fifth-grade secondary schoolstudents. During the research process, 104 students in the experimental group weretaught using the ‘teaching of robotic coding with problem based learning method’,while 74 students in the control group were taught using the ‘teaching of roboticcoding with the traditional learning method’ for five weeks. According to the resultsobtained from the research, it was seen that both the experimental and controlgroups’ coding skills and CT skills increased significantly. However, the experimentalgroup students’ coding and CT skills were significantly more developed than those ofthe control group. In addition, during the treatment, each of the problem scenariosgiven to the experimental group according to the PBL approach was found tohave significantly increased the positive affects of the students. As a result of thediscussion on literature and research findings, it was said that PBL and CT skillscan be bidirectional. This claim needs to be further explored.Key words: coding skills; computational thinking; educational robotics; positive affect;problem-based learning; problem solving; robotic coding---SažetakOvim se istraživanjem željelo ispitati učinak poučavanja robotskoga kodiranjaosmišljenoga prema pristupu problemskoga učenja (PBL) za učenike starijihrazreda osnovnih škola (u dobi od 11 do 12 godina) na njihove vještine kodiranja,vještine računalnoga razmišljanja (CT) i pozitivnih afektaa. U istraživanju jekorišten model „polueksperimentalnoga dizajna s predtestom i posttestom skontrolnom skupinom“, a istraživačku je skupinu činilo 178 učenika 5. razredaosnovnih škola. Tijekom istraživačkoga procesa, 104 učenika u eksperimentalnojskupini učilo je „robotsko kodiranje metodom problemskoga učenja“, dok je 74učenika u kontrolnoj skupini učilo „robotsko kodiranje tradicionalnom metodom“tijekom pet tjedana. Prema dobivenim rezultatima uočeno je da su se vještinekodiranja i vještine računalnoga razmišljanja i u eksperimentalnoj i u kontrolnojskupini značajno povećale. Međutim, vještine kodiranja i CT vještine učenika izeksperimentalne skupine bile su znatno veće od onih u kontrolnoj skupini. Osimtoga, tijekom tretmana, svaki od problemskih scenarija zadanih eksperimentalnojskupini prema PBL pristupu značajno je povećao pozitivne afekte učenika. Kaorezultat rasprave o literaturi i istraživačkim nalazima, smatra se da PBL i CTvještine mogu djelovati dvosmjerno. Ovu bi tvrdnju valjalo dodatno istražiti.Ključne riječi: vještine kodiranja; računalno razmišljanje; obrazovna robotika;pozitivan afekt; problemsko učenje; rješavanje problema; robotsko kodiranje