Computer Science Unplugged approaches have a long tradition in Computing Education for rendering abstract concepts tangible. While numerous studies demonstrate their pedagogical potential, a critical question remains: when and how should these activities be optimally sequenced within classroom instruction? This paper investigates this gap by comparing game-first versus theory-first instructional sequencing using an unplugged board game centered on blockchain technology.

This paper presents the design of a mixed-media approach to hardware education. Despite its global curricular prominence, teaching hardware remains challenging due to the invisibility of internal processes to learners. To bridge the gap between daily device usage and conceptual understanding, a pedagogical framework that combines a structured, Augmented Reality (AR)-enhanced workbook with physical 3D-models was developed. By integrating digital visualization with tactile engagement, this mixed-media strategy aims to transform passive observation into active, self-paced exploration, providing a scalable solution for modern Computing Education.

This paper reports on the findings from a pilot program implementing the new interdisciplinary subject ''Digital World'' for fifth and sixth graders across 64 schools in the state of Hesse, Germany. The new subject combines computer science education with practical application skills and critical thinking skills regarding digital technologies. The project-based learning approaches in the subject promote the combination of digital phenomena with the sustainable development goals. The key topics of ''Digital World'' include 1) ''Computers Everywhere'', 2) ''Information & Data'', 3) ''Basics of Programming'' and 4) ''Networks''. Following the interdisciplinary approach, students explore these key topics through three lenses: technological, user-oriented, and socio-cultural. This paper investigates a) how one year of teaching ''Digital World'' changes fifth grade students' self-efficacy regarding the four topics and the three different perspectives, as well as their subject interest; b) the relationship between the reported self-efficacy for the different aspects and the reported subject interest of the students. The results indicate a positive shift in self-efficacy for the key topics as well as for the perspectives while subject interest showed a downwards trend. There seem to be strong connection between the different aspects of the digital world as well as a moderate correlation to subject interest. These results strengthen the argument for interdisciplinary subjects, but leave room for motivating approaches towards teaching about the digital world.

Understanding Artificial Intelligence (AI) is on its way to becoming a key competence in the coming years due to its rapid advancements and growing societal impact. Learning about different paradigms in AI, particularly in machine learning, is crucial to enabling students to critically engage with and shape an AI-driven world. The study investigates how students of three grade levels (5th, 8th, and 11th) understand AI concepts, addressing the challenge of widespread misconceptions and the limited presence of AI in school curricula. A deductive qualitative analysis was used to analyze the students' preconceptions. The results indicate that younger students typically exhibit minimal or anthropomorphic views, reflecting limited exposure to basic AI principles. Older students show somewhat more advanced, yet still partial, understandings, with misconceptions persisting across all groups. The findings underscore the importance of integrating AI literacy into school curricula and aligning instruction with students' developmental stages. For younger learners, hands-on activities can introduce basic AI functionality while dispelling human-like attributions. Older students benefit from exploring ethical, technical, and societal dimensions of AI. This research highlights the need for age-appropriate AI education to foster informed, responsible users and creators of AI systems.

Sorting algorithms serve as a fundamental concept in computer science education, yet maintaining student motivation remains a challenge. This pilot study investigates whether virtual reality (VR) offers advantages over traditional desktop-based settings in terms of learning success and flow perception, using a self-designed educational game that teaches three sorting algorithms. Learning success and flow perception were assessed through pre- and post-tests across both settings. Results indicate no significant differences between VR and desktop settings in either learning success or flow experience.

As innovative classrooms start integrating new educational media, most informatics educators rely on classic computer rooms. Even though computers might still be seen as the main tool for representing and processing information, contemporary classrooms should include a variety of media to enable theoretical and hands-on approaches alike, and collaborative learning settings. To design the Engaging Computer Science Education Laboratory (ECSE Lab) at the Goethe University Frankfurt, we conducted a mixed-methods study on how future Computer Science classrooms should be designed according to 33 informatics preservice teachers and how such a didactical laboratory can support teacher education. The quantitative questionnaire results show that: 1) While the computer remains the most preferred tool, preservice teachers would like Computer Science Education classrooms to be equipped with a variety of other analog and digital media. 2) Different topics of Computer Science Education require diverse media uses. 3) Even though opinions differ regarding the ideal seating arrangements, more than half of the students prefer group settings. A qualitative data analysis from an open padlet indicates that the uses of such a didactical laboratory comprise especially experimenting with media, realizing new ideas for teaching practices, preparing classes, studying, and the use as a seminar room. Practical implications from these results are: The ECSE Lab (see Figure 1) will be equipped with a variety of analog media (whiteboards, a moderation kit, craft materials) and digital media (stationary computers, a projector, interactive whiteboards, laptops, microcontrollers, tablets, smartphones, cameras) as well as flexible furniture to allow situation-based settings.

Virtual Reality (VR) is increasingly being used as an education medium also enabled by advances in the consumer market, making the devices less expensive and the setup easier. The hardware is more accessible, and players can use Steam as the leading distribution platform for VR applications. Hence, more and more VR applications are being published, also for educational purposes. However, the VR educational games panorama is yet to be described due to the recent rise of this area, as well as users’ perceptions (both learners and educators) and issues specific to each learning domain. Towards this, we provide a first analysis of the Steam educational VR applications. We report an analysis of user reviews describing the positive and negative characteristics of VR experiences. Finally, we give an overview of popular educational VR experiences and what we can learn from reviewers about the design requirements for specific learning fields.

The article investigates possible perspectives on Immersive Learning. After discussing the need for the term, the perception of non-mediation is identified as its key concept. Immersive Learning can be defined as learning with artificial experiences that are perceived as non-mediated. The research area Immersive Learning (Immersive Education) investigates educational benefits provided by such experiences. The internal process Immersive Learning is the active construction and adaption of cognitive, affective, and psychomotor models through these experiences. Immersive Learning as an educational method (Immersive Teaching) uses these experiences as a learning supply.

Basic knowledge about the basic hardware components of a computer contributes to an understanding of our digital environment. Even though the best way to explore the components of a computer might be to build or take apart a real computer, this can be time consuming, dangerous, and expensive. In the virtual reality "Bill's Computer Workshop", students explore the inside of a computer while searching for hardware components. A study with 71 middle school students compared three different devices (laptop, Mobile VR, Head-Mounted-Display) regarding their induced levels of presence and resulting learning outcomes. The findings show 1) a strong effect of the virtual environment for the intended learning objectives, 2) a higher level of technological immersion does not automatically lead to higher learning outcomes, and 3) a positive correlation between presence and learning outcomes. We conclude that the use of immersive technologies for Computer Science Education can have merit when careful design considerations regarding vividness and interactivity of the virtual environments are taken into account.

As Immersive Learning research gains traction, questions arise about how educational Virtual and Augmented Realities can be transferred from laboratory settings and pilot projects into everyday teaching. This paper analyzes existing pedagogical frameworks to identify influencing factors and challenges relevant to teaching and learning with immersive learning environments. We distinguish Immersive Learning as individual learning processes supported by immersive technology and Immersive Teaching as the process of teaching with immersive technology. We subsume learner-specific influences (micro-level), teacher- and classroom-specific influences (meso-level) and institutional and governmental factors (macro-level) for Immersive Teaching and Learning. We conclude that, while investigating isolated variables is important for basic research, efforts integrating Virtual and Augmented Reality in everyday classrooms raise new challenges and questions for future research on the complex relationship between various factors.

The interdisciplinary field of immersive learning research is scattered. Combining efforts for better exploration of this field from the different disciplines requires researchers to communicate and coordinate effectively. We call upon the community of immersive learning researchers for planting the Knowledge Tree of Immersive Learning Research, a proposal for a systematization effort for this field, combining both scholarly and practical knowledge, cultivating a robust and ever-growing knowledge base and methodological toolbox for immersive learning. This endeavor aims at promoting evidence-informed practice and guiding future research in the field. This paper contributes with the rationale for three objectives: 1) Developing common scientific terminology amidst the community of researchers; 2) Cultivating a common understanding of methodology, and 3) Advancing common use of theoretical approaches, frameworks, and models.

A new perspective on using media in the classroom that started to rise in the past few years is immersive learning. This paper considers the learning success of children on the subject of organology and assesses the question, if a virtual environment on the tale “Peter and the Wolf” can support knowledge retention of primary school students relating to various instruments' sound, appearance, hearing impression and groups. In a first pilot study for evaluating this educational virtual environment, eight children filled out a questionnaire before and after the immersive experience. The findings indicate that the environment on the topic of “Peter and the Wolf” could have a positive effect on knowledge retention for fundamental aspects of organology. These first findings for using virtual environments in Music Education encourage the further investigation of using immersive media for teaching and learning in the subject Music.

The corona pandemic is forcing all educational institutions to use numerous digitized forms of teaching due to strict contact restrictions. Since students grow up in an environment already shaped by technology, the assumption arises that such virtual teaching methods, especially those integrating immersive technology, could enhance the learning process of the students. Especially in the subject Religion, abstract, often intangible topics without immediate relation to the students' everyday lives are addressed, resulting in students lack of motivation and interest. As several theories and studies have already shown that digitized forms of learning have a supporting effect on factors relevant for students' learning, a virtual learning environment for learning the topic “Professions in Jerusalem” of the subject Religion was developed, which is a market place in Bethlehem in the time of Jesus. As a time-traveling journalist, the player has the task of interviewing the various profession groups in order to write a newspaper article as the final product. To support the assumption that this virtual experience can foster learning in Religion classrooms, a small sample of ten preservice teachers was used to carry out a first pilot evaluation of the experience. The results of a pre-/post-test comparison give first indicators that factors influencing learning processes in the Religion classroom can be increased through game-based religion education experiences. To address some of the issues that occured during the study, the promotion and expansion of digitization seems to be of great priority to realize immersive teaching settings in the future.

Media Learning is an internal process nested within a complex combination of learner-specific and external factors. The Educational Framework for Immersive Learning hypothesizes learners' presence, motivational traits, emotional states, cognitive capabilities, and previous knowledge as predictors of learning outcomes in immersive educational virtual environments. This article proposes a research model for investigating relations between these variables that seem to be crucial for explaining Immersive Learning processes. Three Virtual Realities for learning three topics of Computer Science Education (components of a computer, asymmetric cryptography, and finite state machines), each provided on three distinct levels of technological immersion, were used to carry out a study with 78 participants. Path analysis was used to test the hypotheses deriving from the research model, showing that presence, prior knowledge about the content, and school performance influence learning outcomes. Presence was predicted by the users' academic emotional states prior to the study and the provided level of immersion. The emotional states were influenced by the students' school performance. Prior knowledge and school performance of the students were affected by the motivational variables. This study contributes to existing research as it adds factors that are crucial for learning processes to the discussion on Immersive Learning.

By following the idea of not using computers at all, Computer Science Unplugged has set the course for many interactive, social, and hands-on activities dealing with concepts and problems of Computer Science Education. Through recent developments in immersive media, technologies like Virtual and Augmented Reality could enhance such activities or even enable new ones. When providing immersive educational media that induce a sense of presence in the virtual environment, the illusion of unmediated learning experience can be delivered. Hence, the concept of "Computer Science Replugged'' can benefit from the affordances that Computer Science Unplugged thrives on while facilitating or enabling activities that might be impossible, dangerous, or expensive to carry out in reality. This paper presents three concepts from Computer Science Education that have been modeled as 3-D immersive educational virtual environments: components of a computer, asymmetric encryption/decryption, and finite state machines. To get a first impression of the effectiveness of these approaches and in order to determine the importance of the level of immersion for the learning process, a study with 78 participants was conducted in which the software was tested on different devices. All activities were found to be significantly effective with regards to the pre- and post-tests. When analyzing these results on the basis of comparing the least immersive setting (laptop) with the most immersive setting (head-mounted-display), the findings indicate different effects with effect sizes betweenβ = -.17 andβ = .41. This raises two questions: "Which topics from Computer Science Education can benefit from immersive technology?'' and "What are the opportunities and challenges of the didactical design of Computer Science Replugged activities?'' that have to be adressed in further research.

Virtual reality (VR) technologies have become more affordable and accessible in recent years. This is opening up new methods and opportunities in the field of digital learning. VR can offer new forms of interactive learning and working, especially for subjects from the STEM (Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) area. In this context we investigate the potential and application of VR for computer science education with a systematic review in this paper. We present a formal literature review on the use of VR technologies in computer science education. We focus on the identification of factors such as learning objectives, technologies used, interaction characteristics, and challenges and advantages of using fully immersive VR for computer science education.