Nafidatun Nikmah, Abi Suwito, Susanto, Musbikhin

Cognitive Psychology as A Solution for Integrating Computational Thinking in Mathematics Education

Introduction

Cognitive psychology as a solution for integrating computational thinking in mathematics education. Explore how cognitive psychology offers solutions for integrating computational thinking into mathematics education, especially for students with learning difficulties. Discover effective instructional strategies.

Abstract

Integrating computational thinking skills into mathematics education poses a particular challenge, especially for students with cognitive barriers or learning difficulties. This study aims to examine relevant strategies for addressing the challenges of integrating computational thinking into mathematics learning through a cognitive psychology approach. Employing a literature review method, the research explores a variety of scholarly sources that discuss factors contributing to learning difficulties, both internal (such as cognitive and neurobiological development) and external (such as instructional design and teaching methods). The findings indicate that a cognitive psychological approach can be an effective solution, as it emphasizes thinking processes, motivation, and emotion in learning. Teachers must design instructional strategies that are responsive to students' cognitive capacities and support the development of computational thinking components, including problem decomposition, abstraction, pattern recognition, procedural algorithms, and generalization. With appropriate interventions, mathematics learning can shift its focus beyond content mastery to the sustainable development of computational thinking skills.

Review

This study tackles a highly relevant and pressing issue in contemporary education: the integration of computational thinking (CT) skills into mathematics education, particularly for students facing cognitive barriers or learning difficulties. The premise that a cognitive psychology approach can offer viable solutions to this challenge is both insightful and timely, aligning with calls for more learner-centered pedagogical strategies. By framing the problem through the lens of cognitive processes, motivation, and emotion, the authors promise a nuanced understanding that moves beyond purely technical skill acquisition, aiming instead for a more holistic and sustainable development of CT skills. This focus on the needs of diverse learners adds significant value and broadens the potential impact of the proposed framework. The methodology, a literature review, is appropriate for exploring and synthesizing existing scholarly sources that discuss the multifaceted factors contributing to learning difficulties, encompassing both internal cognitive and neurobiological aspects and external instructional design considerations. The abstract effectively highlights the core findings, asserting that a cognitive psychological approach is effective due to its emphasis on underlying thinking processes, motivation, and emotion. This emphasis provides a robust theoretical foundation for the practical recommendations that follow, which include designing instructional strategies responsive to students' cognitive capacities. The paper outlines key computational thinking components—problem decomposition, abstraction, pattern recognition, procedural algorithms, and generalization—that educators should target, signifying a clear translational path from theory to practice. While the abstract presents a compelling conceptual framework, the inherent limitation of a literature review is its lack of empirical data to validate the proposed solutions directly. Future work stemming from this foundation would ideally involve designing and testing specific cognitive-psychology-informed interventions in diverse classroom settings, particularly with the target population of students with learning difficulties. Nevertheless, this study provides a valuable theoretical roadmap for educators and curriculum developers seeking to embed CT effectively and inclusively within mathematics education. The shift in focus from mere content mastery to the sustainable development of CT skills, underpinned by an understanding of cognitive processes, represents a significant step forward in pedagogical thinking.

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