Grover and Pea highlight nine elements that are widely
accepted as comprising computational thinking. I think that these nine elements account for the
mental (or cognitive) component, just one aspect of the three pillars of
literacy, according to DiSessa. In this component, our minds build on the material basis of
literacy, allowing for intricate and critical connections between external and
internal activity. DiSessa argues that computational literacies can extend
humans’ spatial and dynamic interactive capabilities in a way that traditional
literacies have not yet done.
In addition to this component, DiSessa describes two other
pillars that make up computational literacy, namely the material tools and
social (or community) aspects. The material tools are the programming
environments, and the externally based signs, symbols, depictions, or
representations of our thoughts. These reproducible and manipulable physical
forms allow us to think, remember, and communicate our findings. The final
pillar of literacy is social. An individual can benefit from his own private
intelligence, but the added contributions of others extend our knowledge to its
full potential. Just as Newton and Leibnitz’s collaboration on the
development of calculus allowed for an earlier and more universal
infrastructural mode, in order for computational thinking to become a literacy,
it needs this social aspect where the tools, conventions, and shared environments
are in place.
How can we make sure that these three pillars (material,
mental, and social) are set up within our school system to allow for
computational literacy to become a reality?
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