Running head: CODING AS A LITERACY 1

Coding as a Literacy for Enhancing Secondary Student Learning

Katrina Serrano

University of Northern Iowa

CODING AS A LITERACY 2

The International Society for Technology in Education - ISTE created a list of the hottest

trends in educational technology for 2017. Computation thinking, coding, and robots made the

list as hot trends of 2017. According to the ISTE Team (2017), “The integration of coding across

subject areas is a way to stimulate computational thinking and coding is a new literacy” (para.

16). Computational thinking involves solving a problem and communicating the solution so that

a computer can execute it or carry it out. According to Kafai and Burke (2014), “Computational

thinking has now become an umbrella term for computer science’s contributions to reasoning

and communicating in an increasingly digital world” (p. 4). They go on to state that while

computational thinking is being promoted, coding is not being supported by educators and

leaders in computational thinking, however, learning to code or coding as a literacy is a key

component in the development of computational thinking (p.4).

Coding as a literacy means that students are learning to program a set of instructions that

a computer can perform and that it is an essential skill that all must learn. According to

Moreno-Leon, Robles, and Gonzalez (2016), “Computer programming is becoming a basic skill

that allows for participating effectively in a world full of digital objects and in recent years we

are witnessing initiatives worldwide to promote the teaching of programming in schools” (p.

283). With computers, tablets, and other devices being more accessible to students in schools,

bringing coding into the curriculum is not as complex as it might seem, and does not require that

teachers have a computer science background. There are several sites and apps available to teach

students to code. A popular site Code.org has made it a mission to provide the opportunity for

every student in every school to learn computer science. Teaching and providing secondary
CODING AS A LITERACY 3

students with the opportunity to learn to code is beneficial because it will prepare them for their

future lives and careers, teaches problem solving skills, and results in high levels of engagement.

Teaching secondary students to code provides them with skills that will help them in their

future lives and careers. ​Learning to code at the secondary level can prepare students for future

careers in computer science. According to the New Media Consortium Horizon Report (2017),

“Computer science remains on the fastest growing industries across the world and preparing the

future workforce is critical for economic success” (p. 20). A study was conducted to see what

middle school girls would learn while engaging in programming to create computer games.

According to Denner, Werner, and Ortiz (2011) “ The results of this study provide evidence that

when students program a computer game, they have the opportunity to engage in the kind of

thinking that will prepare them for further study in computing” (p. 248). They also found that a

specific group of the middle school girls required more support beyond just the experience of

programming computer games that the study focused on. Denner, Werner, and Ortiz (2001) state,

“However, among students with no prior programming experience, more extensive instructional

support is needed to engage a greater percentage of students in the more complex computer

science concepts” (p.). The results of the study show that in order for students. especially those

that do not have prior experience, to learn coding skills and for it to have an impact on them;

they need to be engaged in coding on a regular basis with support provided.

While learning to code can inspire some students to pursue careers computer science, the

benefits of coding are more than just preparing students for careers in technology.

According to Kafai and Burke (2014),

CODING AS A LITERACY 4

The point of teaching young people to use introductory programming languages is

not to help them become computer scientists or secure a spot at Google or Apple,

but rather to help them become more effective creators and discerning consumers

of digital media. (p.52)

Understanding how to create and use technology will benefit students in any field they

choose to pursue as a career. Healthcare, for example, is increasingly becoming a field where

technology skills are a necessity. The New Media Consortium Horizon Report (2017) states,

“Coding literacy is becoming increasingly necessary across all industries as fields including data

analysis, marketing, web development, and more require some form of coding proficiency.” (p.

20). ​Additionally according to the New Media Consortium Horizon Report (2017), “Many

educators believe that coding helps children to understand how computers work, to communicate

their thoughts through structure and logic, to think critically, and to be successful in the

increasingly digital workplace” (p. 20). Today’s students are referred to as “digital natives”,

however, it has been found that does not mean that they are actually all fluent with technology.

Resnick et al. (2009), stated, “Though they interact with digital media all the time, few are able

to create their own games, animations, or simulations. It’s as if they can “read” but not “write.”

(p. 62).

A benefit of coding that many people may not be aware of is that it can be used to teach

students collaboration, which is an important skill that students need in their present and future

lives. One of the ISTE Standards for Students, which are designed to promote and prepare

students for future learning, is Global Collaborator and it is defined as, “Students use digital

tools to broaden their perspectives and enrich their learning by collaborating with others and
CODING AS A LITERACY 5

working effectively in teams locally and globally (para. 7). ​Even though computer programming

is often thought of as a solitary activity, it can actually be a social activity particularly when

students are engaged in coding in schools. There are many benefits from having students engage

in coding in a collaborative environment.

Rushkoff (2012) stated the following:

Learning to code and doing so in a social context familiarizes people with the

values of a digital society: the commons, collaboration, and sharing. Learning

how software is developed and how the ecosystem of computer technology really

works helps us understand the new models through which we’ll be working and

living as a society. (para. 7)

There are after school coding clubs that schools can implement easily without the need

for the teacher to have a computer science background that would get secondary students

engaged in coding outside of the academic school day and in turn would promote socialization

and collaboration. Google has an online program called CS First and it is designed for students

ages 9-14. CS First provides curriculum that can be used during the school day or in an

afterschool program. Teachers, librarians, and parents can easily use CS First with students

because there are instructional videos that guide students through each coding activity.

By engaging in coding secondary students are able to work on developing problem

solving skills. In a study conducted in Taiwan schools where students had been learning coding

for over two years ​Su,Yang, Hwang, Huang, & Ming-Yu, (2014) stated, ​ “The findings show that

particular instructional strategies in computer programming studies had the potential to enhance

students’ problem-solving abilities and learning needs over an extended period of time” (p 650).
CODING AS A LITERACY 6

Computational thinking, which occurs when students are engaged in coding, requires the

use of problem solving skills. According to Armoni (2016), “The Computer Science Teachers

Association defined CT (Computational Thinking) as a problem solving process … it is

concerned with formulating the problem in a way that enables the solver to use a computer and

“other tools” to help solve it.” (p.25). The Google Trends in the State of Computer Science 2017

report states, “Computational thinking (CT) is essential to the development of computer

applications and can be used to support problem-solving across all disciplines, including math,

science and the humanities” (p. 12). During the process of coding students will encounter

challenges and must use problem solving skills to overcome them. Coding encourages students

to persevere and not give up when they are trying to run a program and it does not work.

Students have to go back and look at what they have programmed and figure out where they

made errors. Kafai and Burke (2014) state, “In learning to write code, children can learn to

articulate procedures, recognize repetition, and “debug” their own thinking when programs do

not run as expected” (p. 23).

One way to begin engaging students in the process of problem solving through coding is

to start with Hour of Code. Hour of Code is an introduction to computer science that takes place

during Computer Science in Education Week. Hour of Code was originally created by Code.org

to be a yearly event that would result in more interest in computer science. Hour of Code now

can be used by educators all year by going to hourofcode.com and on the site there are activities

for various grade levels and ability levels.

According to Wimmer and Rada (2016),

CODING AS A LITERACY 7

Hour of Code is designed to take advantage of information technology to address

the challenge of getting people to recognize a problem and be able to convert it

into an algorithm. The Hour of Code aims to get students engaged in a tutorial

highlighting, how a problem can have a solution, expressed as an algorithm which

can be translated into code. This code can be run on a computer to solve the

problem. Therefore, to help people appreciate the importance of this process.

(p. 65)

Starting with Hour of Code and then expanding to offer students more opportunities to

engage in coding is an important step towards helping students to develop their problem solving

and computational thinking skills.

Yasmin and Burke (2014) stated the following:

Returning programming to schools is one response to a call to develop

computational thinking in young learners. The premise is that by learning to think

like a computer scientist, students can solve everyday problems, design systems

that we all use in daily life, and progress and innovate in other disciplines. (p. 4)

When students are coding they are highly engaged due to it changing their attitudes

towards computer science, stimulating their creativity, and giving them choice and ownership of

their learning. Engaging in coding can change the way that students think about computer

science and their feelings about their abilities in computer science. In a study conducted by

Philipps and Brooks (2017) in which they surveyed elementary, middle, and high school

students and they found, “Across the board, statistically significant changes were noted in

students attitudes towards ands self- efficacy with computer science after engaging in just one
CODING AS A LITERACY 8

Hour of Code activity” (p. 6). A similar study was conducted by Du, Wimmer, and Rada with

undergraduate students to determine whether participating in Hour of Code could change their

attitudes towards programming and the impact on their learning of programming skills.

According to Du, Wimmer, and Rada (2016),

The results indicate the positive impact of the Hour of Code on students’ attitudes

toward programming. However, completing an Hour of Code tutorial alone does

not necessarily impact students’ skills for coding, which suggests that a

combination of online tutorials with a traditional computer science lecture may be

necessary to improve students’ coding knowledge. (p. 67)

The results of the study conducted by Du, Wimmer, and Rada support the need for coding as a

part of computer science to be a regular part of the curriculum that all students receive rather

than just a one time a year activity.

Coding is highly engaging to students because it can stimulate their creativity. Creativity

is an important part of thinking and learning and can be increased significantly when paired with

technology.

According to Henriksen, Mishra, and Fisser (2016),

Creativity is also not a skill that is limited to few individuals. Similarly,

technology is not something that is limited to a few individuals or in a few select

domains. In policy and curricular documents these issues related to creativity and

technology should be part for all learners, not just for the “special” or “talented”

ones. (p. 35)

CODING AS A LITERACY 9

By providing the opportunity for all students to learn coding it will result in them further

developing their creativity, which is a skill that will help them in all aspects of their lives.

When students are involved in coding/programming they are able to take ownership of

their learning due to having choice, which then results in them being more engaged.

Moreno-León, Robles, & Román-González (2016) study found the following:

The active involvement of students in the learning process increases when they

feel competent, that is, when they trust their own abilities and have high

expectations of self-efficacy, when they value the work, and when they feel

responsible for the learning objectives” (p. 284).

In a study conducted to analyze young student’s thinking when coding using Scratch Jr., Faloon

(2016) found, “Outcomes indicate these goals were successfully met, with exceedingly high

levels of ‘on task’ engagement and student self-management, collaboration and knowledge

sharing, being recorded” (p. 591). While the study participants were elementary students since

Scratch Jr. is for children ages 5-7, students at the secondary level can use Scratch or other a

multitude of other coding programs available that will provide them with a choice and voice as

they are learning to code, which will result in high levels of engagement.

Current research is limited on coding at the secondary level, however, Moreno-León,

Robles, & Román-González, (2016) found that, “The inclusion of computer programming with

Scratch, resulted in significant acceleration in the learning curve for 6th grade students and

transfer which is a cognitive process where the knowledge acquired in one situation is applied in

a different context” (p. 296). The transfer that the study refers to is that students were able to take

what they were learning through the process of programming/coding and apply it in other subject
CODING AS A LITERACY
10

areas at school. In today’s age of high stakes testing in education, unfortunately, there needs to

be a strong correlation made between computer science and improved academic achievement.

More research needs to be conducted to see the impact that integrating coding into the

curriculum at the secondary has on academic learning that advocates of computer science can use

when making claims.

The majority of research in coding and computer science is being done in countries

outside of the United States. The United States is also behind other countries as far as making

computer science a priority in schools. Students in the United States need to be prepared to live

and compete for jobs in a global society and computer science as part of the required curriculum

for all is a part of making that happen.

According to Rushkoff (2012),

More generally, knowing something about programming makes us competitive as

individuals, companies and a nation. The rest of the world is learning code. Their

schools teach it, their companies are filled with employees who get it, and their

militaries are staffed by programmers -- not just gamers with joysticks. According

to the generals I've spoken with, we are less than a generation away from losing

our technological superiority on the cyber battlefield, which should concern a

nation depending so heavily on drones for security and electronic trading as an

industry. (para. 6 )

Computer science is most often an elective when it is offered in schools in the United States

rather than a requirement for all students.

CODING AS A LITERACY
11

P. Hubwieser et al. found that the top challenges to K-12 computing education in the

United States are the following:

The lack of understanding of CS as a scientific discipline, a curriculum that must

be constantly reviewed and revised, and able to engage all students, ensuring that

teachers have the technical, content, and pedagogical knowledge needed to teach

CS, by providing ways for teachers to continually refresh and upgrade their

knowledge, and providing schools with access to the hardware, software, and

resources they require in order to teach a rigorous, up-to-date computer science

curriculum” (p. 6).

Computer science must be made a priority and the challenges need to be overcome. Beginning

with coding as a literacy, which has so many resources available to even teachers that do not

have computer science backgrounds is an important first step.

There are several barriers to computer science that need to be overcome in order to make

coding as a literacy for all a reality.

According to Wang (2017),

Increasing access to CS learning is an early needed step, but without individual

and societal support to remove social barriers, the diversity gap will persist in our

education system. Computing professionals can play an essential and active role

in making CS accessible for all students. They can advocate with school leaders

and help empower and enable young people. Each of us has the power to help

build and strengthen the computing field by encouraging and welcoming all K–12

students. (p 28)
CODING AS A LITERACY
12

Females and minorities are underrepresented in the technology field and the same is occurring in

the teaching of computer science. Groups such as Girls Who Code, Black Girls Code, and

Iridescent are working to close the gender and diversity gap that exists in computer science. Girls

Who Code, for example, was founded by Reshma Saujani, who in 2010 was the first Indian

American woman to run for congress. While her run for congress was not successful, she visited

many schools during that time and observed the gender gap in computer science for herself.

What she observed inspired her to start the first Girls Who Code club in New York. In an

interview for CNN (2017), Reshma Saujani stated, “I think that this is an opportunity we have to

give every single one of our children. I think the problem is right now, culturally, images that we

see are very male. We have to be thoughtful and think about how we can open the door” (para.

1).

In conclusion, coding as a literacy for all students and in particular secondary students is

beneficial due to the positive impact it can have on their future lives and careers, the opportunity

coding allows for working on problem solving skills, and that coding results in high levels of

engagement. Teachers need to find ways to incorporate coding across the curriculum due to the

impact that it can have on student learning in different academic areas. Even though this paper

focuses on coding at the secondary level, it is beneficial to start early so that students began to

build a background. There are several coding resources for elementary school and even

preschool. School administrators need to support and encourage the teaching of computer

science and coding in classrooms as well as through after school programs.

While current research is limited on the impact of coding on students in academic content

areas, the research that has been conducted has shown that there is an impact. More research
CODING AS A LITERACY
13

particularly at the secondary level will add more validity to the push for coding as a literacy.

Additionally more research needs to be conducted in the United States in schools where coding

is being taught to students. The United States is currently behind in computer science at the K-12

level and as a result students are not being fully prepared for their future of living in an

increasingly more digital world. Coding as a literacy needs to move from be a hot trend to being

the norm for all students. Kafai and Burke (2016) sum up best the need for changes to be made to

computer science education and education in general when they stated, “Despite having the

machines in schools for over thirty years, schools have largely failed to enact meaningful change

in the way that children think about and participate in using them” (p. 116). Coding as a literacy

for all is just the type of meaningful change needed to revolutionize education and not only

change the way students think about and use technology, but also to give them the tools and

skills they need to shape their futures.

CODING AS A LITERACY
14

References

Armoni, M. (2016). Computing in schools: Computer science, computational thinking,

programming, coding: The anomalies of transitivity in K-12 computer science education.

ACM Inroads,​ 7, 24-27. Doi: 10.1145/3011071

Denner, J., Werner, L., & Ortiz, E. (2012). Computer games created by middle school girls: Can

they be used to measure understanding of computer science concepts? ​Computers and

Education​, 58, 240-249. ​https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2011.08.006

Draznin, G. (2017). Girls Who Code founder: Men build technologies to 'replace their mothers'.

Retrieved December 13, 2017, from

http://money.cnn.com/2017/08/21/news/economy/girls-who-code-saujani/index.html

Du, J., Wimmer, H., & Rada, R. (2016). “Hour of Code”: Can it change students’ attitudes

toward programming? ​Journal of Information Technology Education: Innovations in

Practice,15​, 053-073. doi:10.28945/3421

11 hot edtech trends to watch. (2017, March 23). Retrieved November 18, 2017, from

https://www.iste.org/explore/articleDetail?articleid=865
CODING AS A LITERACY
15

Falloon, G. (2016). An analysis of young students’ thinking when completing basic coding tasks

using Scratch Jnr. on the IPad. ​Journal of Computer Assisted Learning,​ 32, 576-593. doi:

10.1111/jcal.12155

Henriksen, D., Mishra, P., & Fisser, P. (2016). Infusing creativity and technology in 21st century

education: A systemic view for change. ​Educational Technology & Society​, 19 (3),

27–37.

Hubwieser, P. (2012). Computer science education in secondary schools: The introduction to a

new compulsory subject. ​ACM Transactions on Computing Education​, 16, 1-41. Doi:

10.1145.2382564.2382568

Hubwieser, P., Armoni, M., Giannakos, M. N., & Mittermeir, R. T. (2014). Perspectives and

visions of computer science education in primary and secondary (K-12) schools.​ ACM

Transactions on Computing Education​, 14, 1-9. Doi: 10.1145/2602482

Kafai, Y.B., & Burke, Q. (2014). ​Connected code: Why children need to learn programming.

Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press.

Moreno -León, J. M., Robles, G., & Román-González, M. (2016). Code to learn: Where does It

belong in the K-12 curriculum? ​Journal of Information Technology Education: Research,

15​, 283-303. doi:10.28945/3521

CODING AS A LITERACY
16

NMC/CoSN Horizon Report > 2017 K-12 Edition. (n.d.). Retrieved December 2, 2017 from

https://www.nmc.org/publication/nmccosn-horizon-report-2017-k-12-edition/

Resnick, M., Maloney, J., Monroy-Hernandez, A., Rusk, N., Eastmond, E., Brennan, K., …. &

Kafai, Y., (2009). Scratch: Programming for all. ​Communications of the ACM​, 52, 60-67.

Doi: 10.1145/1592761.1592779

Rushkoff, D. (2012, November 13). Code Literacy: A 21st-Century Requirement. Retrieved

November 18, 2017, from

https://www.edutopia.org/blog/code-literacy-21st-century-requirement-douglas-rushkoff

Su, A. Y. S., Yang, S. J. H., Hwang, W. Y., Huang, C, S, J., & MIng-Yu, T. (2014).

Investigating the role of computer-supported annotation in problem-solving-based

teaching: An empirical study of scratch programming pedagogy. ​British Journal of

Educational Technology,​ 45, 647-665. Doi: 10.1111/bjet.12058

Wang, J. (2017). Is the U.S. education system ready for CS for all?: Insights from a recent

google-gallup national research study seeking to better understand the context of K–12

CS education. ​Communication of the ACM​, 60, 26-28. Doi: 10.1145/3108928