From CT to ST

7/25/2019 From CT to ST

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From System ThinkingtoComputationalThinking

By GeoAddis

November 04,0!"


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Computational Thinking What is computational thinking

The drawbacks of computational thinking

The Rise of Technological Solutionism

Sustainability as a System Condition

System Thinking The reasons why System thinking outweighs computational

thinking Teaching System Thinking Integrating System Thinking into the ICT Curriculum

#esson outline


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dene and use the concepts of abstraction as modeling

understand the distinctive nature of computational thinking

Analye information to draw conclusions

be aware of applications of computational thinking

#esson $b%e&tives


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The growth of ICT over the past two decades poses manydilemmas for sustainability practitioners"

#n the rst hand ICT has grown to become a signicantfraction of humanity$s environmental footprint% throughdemand for energy% particularly the embodied energy ofmanufacture and demand for scarce or critical metals andminerals"

#n the other hand% ICTs are fre&uently cited as a key part ofthe solution% as they o'er new opportunities to monitor andanalye human activity (e"g" movement of people and goods)with alternatives (e"g" teleconferencing and virtualiation)"

'ntrodu&tion


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Computational thinking is a way of solving problems%designing systems% and understanding human behavior thatdraws on concepts fundamental to computer science"

Computational thinking means creating and making use ofdi'erent levels of abstraction% to understand and solveproblems more e'ectively"

Computational thinking will be a fundamental skill

used by everyone in the world by the middle of the *+stCentury (by ,eannette Wing)"

A( )hat is Computational Thinking*


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Computational thinking (CT) is a problem-solving process

that includes a number of characteristics

Analying and logically organiing data

.ormulating problems such that computers may assist

Identifying% testing% and implementing possible solutions

Automating solutions via algorithmic thinking

/eneraliing and applying this problem solving process to

a wide variety of problems"

Computational thinking+


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Computational Thinking is not uni&ue to computing% and isnot ade&uate to portray the whole of the eld"

It attempts to solve problems through algorithmic meanswhile failing to perceive that can not be e0pressed using theabstractions of CT

It looks for problems that tackled with computers" 1thicaldilemmas have no computational solutions% and areoverlooked when peering through a CT lens"

Computational Thinking lack awareness of the politicalconte0t in which these 2problems3 arise"

B( ra-ba&ks o. Computational Thinking


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The belief that comple0 societal problems can be re-cast as2neatly dened problems with denite% computable solutionsor as transparent and self-evident processes that can be easilyoptimied4if only the right algorithms are in place53"Morozovs defn.

The term solutionism also serves to emphasie the point thatthinking in terms of problems and solutions is itself oftencounter-productive"

1very wicked problem can be treated as a symptom of anotherproblem"

C( The /ise o. Te&hnologi&al Solutionism


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It is the ability of a system to endure

Sustainability as a System Condition


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System thinking is a method of critical thinking by which youanalye the relationships between the system6s parts in orderto understand a situation for better decision-making" Insimpler terms% you look at a lot of the trees% other plants andcritters living around the trees% the weather% and how all

these parts t together in order to gure out the forest" systems thinking is an essential component of any attempt to

bring about transformational change to a sustainable society" systems thinking can overcome the weaknesses of

computational thinking as a conceptual basis for designing

ICT for sustainability"

4( )hat is SystemThinking


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System thinking is better than computational thinking by thefollowing reasons"

A. Domain Ontology for Sustainability Thinking 7ierarchical decomposition is used to reduce comple0

problems% and encapsulation is used to create re-usablesolutions"

7owever% this ontology focuses on computational solutions%usually at the e0pense of detailed analysis of problems andproblem conte0ts

System thinking +


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System thinking addresses the gap through the set of concepts Stocks and 8ows9- A system analysis is to e0plore in terms of

stocks (&uantities that vary over time) and 8ows (inputs andoutputs that a'ect the level)

1mergent :ehavior 9- Systems tend to have properties thatcan not be traced to individual components or groups ofcomponents

.eedback loop 9- reinforcing feedback loops tend to amplifyany change within the system through a chain of cause ande'ect"

System thinking +


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B. Theories of Change Systems thinking provides a number of theories of change

C. Tools for Critical Analysis

computational thinking does not encourage critical thinking"That is not to say that computational thinkers lack the tools toevaluate whether a technological solution will work as planned"

System thinking +


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Introductiono systems thinking is not more widely taught and practiced is

because it is usually presented as a set of abstract concepts farremoved from everyday practice

systems thinking has had little impact in the past% because the

concepts are hard to teach and hard to learn it does not t neatly into any e0isting discipline within the

structure of higher education ;earn the four steps of computational

thinking Analye information to draw conclusions


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A graduate level course on systems thinking forglobal problems% which e0plores the researchliterature on systems thinking in some depth% usingthe games to e0plore the concepts

1ngineering design courses that incorporate fulllifecycle analysis as an essential step in any designprocess"

Software engineering courses that adopt and

contribute to open source pro=ects% to illustrate thedynamics that occur in a broader communitypro=ect

'ntegrating System Thinking into the 'CT Curri&ulum


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In conclusion9- the societal transformations needed to achieve

sustainability are more often hampered by ICT thanthey are helped"

computational thinking as an important factor% asittends to push computer professionals towardsoverly simplistic formulations of comple0 societalproblems% and fosters technological solutionism - a

belief that solving these simplied problems willhelp build a more sustainable world"

( C$NC#1S'$N


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