Hillary Swanson
Papers
1
Total Citations
8
H-Index
1
About
Hillary Swanson is an emerging scholar whose research lies at the intersection of computational thinking, embodied cognition, and early childhood education. Her most-cited work, "From Embodied Doing to Computational Thinking in Kindergarten" (2023), offers a groundbreaking motor control-based framework for understanding how computational thinking can emerge naturally from young children’s physical, tangible coding activities. Drawing on insights from cognitive and motor neuroscience, Swanson proposes a mechanism by which embodied performance—such as a child navigating a tangible coding task—transitions into abstract computational reasoning. This work has already garnered 8 citations, signaling its growing influence in the learning sciences and computing education communities. Swanson’s contributions are particularly notable for bridging theoretical accounts of learning with practical, developmentally appropriate instructional design. By grounding computational thinking in the body’s sensorimotor systems, she challenges traditional, disembodied views of programming education and opens new pathways for integrating CT into kindergarten classrooms. Her research is essential reading for educators, cognitive scientists, and curriculum designers seeking to understand how young learners build foundational computational concepts through active, hands-on engagement.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1From Embodied Doing to Computational Thinking in Kindergarten8 citations · 2023