Development of Computational Thinking through STEM Activities for the Promotion of Gender Equality

Ronald Paucar-Curasma (), Liszeth Paola Cerna-Ruiz, Claudia Acra-Despradel, Klinge Orlando Villalba-Condori (), Luis Alberto Massa-Palacios, Andrés Olivera-Chura and Isabel Esteban-Robladillo
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Ronald Paucar-Curasma: Grupo de Investigación TIC Aplicadas a la Sociedad, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Tayacaja Daniel Hernández Morillo, Pampas 09156, Peru
Liszeth Paola Cerna-Ruiz: Grupo de Investigación TIC Aplicadas a la Sociedad, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Tayacaja Daniel Hernández Morillo, Pampas 09156, Peru
Claudia Acra-Despradel: Vicerrectoría Proyectos de Investigación, Vinculación e Internacionalización, Universidad Nacional Pedro Henríquez Ureña, Santo Domingo 10100, Dominican Republic
Klinge Orlando Villalba-Condori: Vicerrectorado de Investigación, Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola, Lima 15024, Peru
Luis Alberto Massa-Palacios: Facultad de Ingeniería Ambiental y Sanitaria, Universidad Nacional San Luis Gonzaga, Ica 11001, Peru
Andrés Olivera-Chura: Facultad de Ingeniería Geológica y Metalúrgica, Universidad Nacional del Altiplano, Puno 21001, Peru
Isabel Esteban-Robladillo: Facultad Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Nacional de Ucayali, Ucayali 25003, Peru

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 16, 1-19

Abstract: In the article, the authors evaluate the computational thinking skills according to gender of a group of male and female students of industrial engineering and systems engineering from universities located in the Andean region of Peru; the five key skills were evaluated: abstraction, decomposition, generalization, algorithmic design, and evaluation. To strengthen computational thinking, activities related to agriculture, livestock, the environment, safety, and education were proposed, which are of interest to the community where the students live. The research methodology followed is quasi-experimental of the post-test type with intentional non-probabilistic sampling. During the development of the activities, the students used microcontrollers, sensors, and actuators; thus, they also used block-based programming to implement hardware and software prototypes. The results have shown, according to the inferential analysis, that there are no significant differences between male and female students in any of the computational thinking skills. These results were due to the educational strategy applied in the development of STEM activities, which focused on solving real problems in the student community and generated the same enthusiasm in female and male students compared to other activities that only generated motivation in male students.

Keywords: computational thinking; gender; STEM activities; electronic devices (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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