Learnable Computing With Kodu: A Semiotic Economy of Interaction

• In Event: 63.084 - Roundtable Session 22
  In Roundtable Session: 63.084-12 - Roundtable Session: The Many Facets of Video Game Communities, Design, and Discourses

Abstract

Research increasingly suggests that easy-to-use game creation software, some of which feature visual programming environments, could help interest young people in computing while supporting their development of computational thinking practices. This paper examines an afterschool program’s use of a tool called Kodu Game Lab to introduce middle-school students to basic elements of computational thinking. It qualitatively investigates the unique design grammar of Kodu’s visual programming interface, and asks how learners employ unique visual programming representations to think about computational problems. To do so, it analyzes multisource data from a programming challenge presented to middle-school program participants, and argues that the “economy of interaction” embedded in Kodu’s interface design shapes and structures participants’ understandings of computational problem solving.

Authors

• Benjamin M Devane, The University of Iowa

• Kelly Tran, Arizona State University - Tempe

• Cody Steward, University of Florida

• Brian LaPlant, University of Florida