Promoting computational thinking integration skills of pre-service social studies teachers

This study investigates how pre-service social studies teachers integrate computational thinking (CT) into their teaching practice. Conducted as part of the Erasmus+ Future ‘Teachers Education: Computational Thinking and STEAM (TeaEdu4CT) project, the authors employed a mixed-methods convergent design with 30 senior pre-service teachers in Turkey. A specially designed undergraduate course aimed to enhance participants’ CT self-efficacy, digital competence and lesson-planning capabilities. Quantitative results indicated significant gains in CT self-efficacy (p < .05) and STEM teaching confidence, whilst qualitative findings revealed that participants effectively applied abstraction and decomposition in lesson designs. Despite challenges such as language barriers and limited technical skills, participants valued hands-on CT activities. The authors present a practical framework and highlight the necessity of interdisciplinary, practice-based CT modules in teacher education to strengthen pedagogical and computational competencies in humanities disciplines.