Improving computational thinking: the role of students' networking skills and digital informal learning

Many professionals consider computational thinking an essential skill in the twenty-first century. Furthermore, some studies demonstrate that computer-based networking skills and digital environments can improve computational thinking. A challenging question to be addressed is whether informal learning in a digital context is related to computational thinking and whether it could mediate the role in networking skills and computational thinking. This study addresses the potential relationship between higher education students' computer-based networking skills and their computational thinking by means of the mediation of digital informal learning. The study sample comprised 351 students at Shiraz University in Iran. The results, found through structural equation modeling, indicated that networking skills positively and significantly related to students' digital informal learning and computational thinking. In addition, digital informal learning was considered a mediator between networking skills and computational thinking. In conclusion, educators and policymakers should consider the role of digital informal learning alongside networking skills to improve computational thinking skills.