ThinkTEd Lab, um caso de aprendizagem criativa em computação no nível superior

Abstract

Much has been discussed about the difficulties related to computer education. Among the concerns are high failure and dropout rates. In the Teaching Degree in Computing Science, there are additional difficulties regarding the course's identity. This is reflected in the education of part of the students, who face problems finding themselves in careers related to the area. Some of the attempts to mitigate these problems are the application of active learning methodologies, collaborative workspaces, soft skills development modernization of curricula, strengthening of practical actions, among others. In this sense, this dissertation, through qualitative research, presents a case study to investigate the effects on academic and professional education of undergraduate students in Computing caused by their participation at ThinkTed Lab. ThinkTEd Lab is a multidisciplinary space for the development of creative and innovative computational solutions that can be applied to education. For verify this, studies were carried out from 2018 to 2020 that had three data sources: participant observation, document analysis, and a structured questionnaire, with the participation of sixteen students. As research results are presented: (i) a creative learning proposal with scientific research for higher education; (ii) student production, consolidated in 42 publications, three awards, 25 educational games developed, 27 courses/events promoted, sixteen research and extension projects, and fifteen participation in scientific and technological events; and (iii) students' perception of their participation in the ThinkTEd Lab and the impacts on their academic and professional life. The results suggest that: (i) the participation of students in the ThinkTEd Lab prevented 81\% of them from dropping out of the course; (ii) adapting creative learning to higher education, promoting the development of technical skills and soft skills; (iii) students have the perception of being prepared for the job market, whether in research, teaching, or software development; (iv) students had the opportunity to develop Computational Thinking through real-world problem solving; and (v) students believe that the laboratory is essential for their education, among other things, because it provides possibilities to learn how to learn.