Introduction: Programming and Computational Thinking in Technology Education

In recent years, digital technology, programming, and computational thinking have been incorporated on a larger scale as curriculum components in technology education in many countries across the globe. Technology education research about programming and computational thinking is needed, and this edited book, Programming and Computational Thinking in Technology Education: Swedish and International Perspectives, contributes with new research that has many international applications and grounds for comparison, both in schools and in the research community. This introduction not only serves as a background for the reader as s/he delves into the various chapters of the book, but also introduces some pertinent and sometimes longstanding issues in technology education and its relation to computers and computing. These issues are: 1. Programming and computational thinking in school curricula: the early 21st century wave; 2. Computational thinking and literacy; 3. Teacher competence in programming; and 4. Computational thinking, programming, and learning in technology education.