Pattern recognition in programming to support the evaluation of Computational Thinking

Computational thinking is a high-level skill that involves both critical and creative thinking. This research proposes an advanced method for analyzing source code to assess computational thinking skills in elementary school students. We present a large-scale approach that examines source code from various programming exercises using a generalized abstract syntax tree, enabling language-independent analysis. Clustering techniques are applied to identify different levels of computational thinking development in areas such as parallelism, data representation, abstraction and decomposition, control flow, and programming structure. The results of the automated assessment provide insights into students' computational thinking abilities across diverse populations, highlighting opportunities for improving the educational framework.