A Game-Based Platform for Introducing and Practicing Computational Problem Solving

Many educational endeavors address the challenge of developing approaches, tools and platforms for strengthening analytical and structural ways of thinking, deemed essential to effective problem solving in various disciplines. One important approach along these lines, computational problem solving (CPS), often called computational thinking, encompasses a set of techniques and strategies that involve expressing problems and solving them in ways that a computer could execute. Plethora addresses this challenge, concentrating on CPS. It is a game-based platform, invented by computer scientists from the Weizmann Institute of Science, collaborating with pedagogical experts from The Center for Educational Technology. Plethora teaches the concepts and skills of CPS via graphically attractive logical challenges that are easily and concisely described in natural language. This contrasts other platforms aimed at teaching CPS using standard programming environments. Plethora is implemented in many schools across Israel, and was selected as the leading tool for school-level cyber competitions in Israel. Research we conducted recently with 4th grade students to evaluate the effectiveness of teaching CPS, exhibited positive results concerning students who experienced Plethora relative to those who did not.