Gamification and Computational Thinking in Education: A systematic literature review

Abstract

The rapid development of gamification and computational thinking seems to open up new educational horizons by providing new opportunities for students to acquire the basic digital skills needed for their cognitive development. Gamification, on the side, flourishes because it brings about high degree of participants’ engagement in an activity. Accordingly, on the other side, the growing scientific interest in computational thinking centers on the fact that it provides a fruitful field of dialogue in the research community for the development of critical and analytical thinking of students. Hence, this paper aims to synthesize knowledge about gamification and computational thinking for improving education for the benefit of students. Specifically, this paper describes: (a) the theoretical background of gamification in learning and education, (b) relevant studies in literature and their findings, and (c) specific gamified applications of STEM [Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics] which have been developed to this subject area. Four databases were searched, and 37 papers were finally selected for this review. The findings from the presented learning theories set the foundation on how students obtain knowledge, and the relevant studies in the field of gamification and computational thinking showed some first positive outcomes stemming some first research attempts which need further examination. Furthermore, it seems that with the right use of game mechanics and elements, well-designed applications of STEM gain students’ interest to learn through gameplay and motivate them to cultivate computational thinking and problem-solving skills.