Five defining characteristics of algorithms: finite, input, outputs, effective, definiteness¶

Theory · All theories
Evidence · no claims cited

Description¶

The deck presents a framework, attributed to Shuchi Grover, defining algorithms as "precise step-by-step plans or procedures to meet an end goal or to solve a problem" and algorithmic thinking as the skill of developing them. It enumerates five characteristics: finiteness (must terminate after a finite number of steps), input (zero or more inputs), outputs (one or more outputs), effectiveness, and definiteness, where each step is "precisely defined" and carried out in a rigorous and unambiguous way.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• An algorithm must terminate after a finite number of steps and each step must be precisely and unambiguously defined

Constraints¶

• The framework is presented for K-12 classroom use, citing Grover's Computer Science in K-12 handbook and Knuth's The Art of Computer Programming

Target Learners¶

• Students in grades 3-8

Target Learning Objectives¶

• Understanding what makes a procedure an algorithm and developing algorithmic thinking

Claims¶

Related Theories¶

• Algorithms defined as precise step-by-step plans with four characteristics: finite, inputs and outputs, effective, definite

Examples¶

• Code.org CS Fundamentals unplugged lessons: Dice Race, My Robotic Friends, Paper Planes, Plant a Seed, Tangrams
• Ten-term algorithm vocabulary set for grades 3-8
• Flowcharts as a representation for planning algorithms
• Codable maze unplugged lesson for shortest-distance algorithms across content areas
• Embed algorithmic thinking lessons across content, standalone, SEL, problem-based, and review contexts
• CT Boosters: 30-minute algorithmic-thinking professional learning sessions for grades 3-8
• App Inventor community-problem app projects with storyboarding

Key Sources¶

• Computational Thinking Boosters: Algorithmic Thinking 3-8. (2021). Presentation dated Jan. 12, 2021, supported by NSF grant award #1923314. https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1923314