Designing a Computer Programming Environment for Gifted Students: A Case Study

Abstract

The aim of this study was to design, implement and evaluate the programming process for gifted students and offer suggestions to teachers and researchers. For this purpose, 5 gifted students were provided programming activities for ten weeks. Scratch was used in the programming training process. The qualitative data was collected by observation, interviews and written forms. The results showed that students' interests and needs should be taken into consideration in programming teaching plans. The duration of the lessons should be kept flexible and the programming activities should be project-based. The study revealed that game programming increases the attendance and motivation of the gifted students. In future research, programming instruction can be repeated by making necessary corrections and researched in different dimensions such as motivation, academic achievement and self-efficacy.