Influence of computational thinking on the cognitive skills of problem solving methods Influencia del pensamiento computacional en las habilidades cognitivas propias de los métodos de resolución de problemas

Abstract

Software development has become a fundamental aspect in the training of engineers and has been established as a differentiating competence at the time of accessing the labor field; however, its learning is not an easy task and many studies suggest that the main drawback is in the cognitive weakness of students to solve problems, which is a recurring problem in other formation areas, it is necessary to strengthen understanding, analysis, synthesis and evaluation at a general level.

From this perspective, a research with a qualitative approach and phenomenological design was proposed, whose main objective was to analyze the influence of computational thinking, developed through the learning of programming, in the improvement of cognitive skills of problem solving methods. The informants of the research were 10 students of the programming I and II course in the period 2021-I, and used as information collection techniques tests at the beginning and end of the course, participant observation and semi-structured interview.

The results of the applied instruments showed that students present problems of understanding and interpretation, as well as lack of knowledge of basic concepts that hindered the correct approach of solutions to the problems presented in the initial tests. In the diagnostic test, the majority of students obtained low results, which indicates that there are deficiencies to solve problems, since the elements of computational thinking are applied in a minimal way and the correct answers are more due to mental processes of inferior order such as memory, observation and comparison. The results of the final test and the analysis of the other instruments applied show that the acquisition of programming knowledge improved abstraction and analysis skills; increased creativity; included elements of design, planning and monitoring; developed metacognition, synthesis and evaluation.

The present research obtained as a result that the development of computational thinking allows students to improve the way they solve problems, acquiring cognitive and metacognitive skills to use new methods and strategies that generate more creative, agile and efficient solution alternatives. The proper use of the knowledge and elements acquired around computational thinking and programming learning, as well as the improvement of skills associated with analysis and understanding, allow optimizing the way they solve problems.