Holistic STEAM Education Through Computational Thinking: A Perspective on Training Future Teachers

Computational thinking (CT) skills are argued to be vital to preparing future generations of learners to be productive citizens in our increasingly technologically sophisticated societies. However, teacher education lags behind policy in many countries, and there is a palpable need for enhanced support for teacher education in CT. This paper addresses this gap, establishing an intellectual framework with which to explore the manner in which CT can be inculcated in compulsory school students. Drawing on a deeper awareness of the broader societal and cultural context of the activities we introduce a new approach to designing teacher education. The novelty of our approach is that training computation thinking is framed as an integrative element rather than as a separate study subject. This approach provides better articulation between Engineering and Science oriented subjects and Arts, providing supporting methods to develop the professional skills of student-teachers.