Integrating mind mapping with generative AI chatbots significantly improves students' programming performance, computational thinking, and self-efficacy, with progressive mind mapping showing the strongest positive effects.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate how integrating mind mapping with generative AI (GenAI) chatbots affects students' programming academic performance, computational thinking, and programming self-efficacy, and to examine whether different types of mind mapping approaches produce different outcomes.

Methods: The researchers conducted a quasi-experimental study with 111 seventh-grade students from a junior high school in southeastern China, divided into three groups:

1. Experimental Group 1 (36 students): Used progressive mind mapping with a GenAI chatbot
2. Experimental Group 2 (36 students): Used self-constructed mind mapping with a GenAI chatbot
3. Control Group (39 students): Used only a GenAI chatbot without mind mapping

The progressive mind mapping approach included three stages: gap-filling mind maps (pre-designed with blank spaces), prompting mind maps (providing hints/key points), and self-constructed mind maps (independently created). The experiment followed a structured teaching approach across five phases: clarifying the problem, analyzing the problem, formulating solutions, writing the program, and summarizing/reflecting. The intervention lasted 11 weeks with weekly 40-minute sessions, including 3 weeks of programming basics, pre/post-tests, and 6 weeks of intervention.

Key Findings:

• Both experimental groups demonstrated significantly better programming performance and computational thinking than the control group
• Experimental Group 1 (progressive mind mapping + GenAI chatbot) showed the highest performance in programming achievement and problem-solving skills
• All three teaching approaches significantly improved students' programming self-efficacy, with no significant differences between groups
• Mind mapping helped students clarify their thoughts, organize complex programming concepts, and ask more specific questions to the GenAI chatbot
• In terms of computational thinking sub-dimensions, there were significant differences in creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving tendencies, but not in algorithmic thinking or cooperative learning
• Progressive mind mapping provided systematic guidance that enhanced students' ability to understand complex problems and develop programming skills

Implications: The study demonstrates that:

• GenAI chatbots can enhance programming education when used with appropriate scaffolding
• Mind mapping serves as an effective cognitive tool to complement GenAI chatbots by helping students organize their thoughts and interact more effectively with AI
• Progressive scaffolding of mind mapping is particularly beneficial for novice learners, allowing them to gradually develop independent thinking skills
• The integration of visual thinking tools with AI can address potential drawbacks of AI in education, such as over-reliance and lack of critical thinking
• Teachers should guide students to use AI tools responsibly, encouraging independent thinking before using GenAI chatbots for validation or assistance

Limitations:

• The relatively short intervention period (6 weeks) may not fully capture long-term learning effects
• The sample was limited to three classes of seventh-grade students from a single school in China
• The study lacked comprehensive evaluation methods for analyzing students' mind mapping work and their interaction data with the GenAI chatbot
• The findings may not generalize to different age groups, cultural contexts, or programming languages

Future Directions: The researchers recommend:

• Conducting longer-term studies to validate the findings
• Expanding the sample size to include students of different ages and backgrounds
• Developing more comprehensive evaluation methods for analyzing mind mapping and chatbot interaction data
• Investigating how varying levels of AI integration affect different aspects of learning
• Exploring the effectiveness of progressive mind mapping in other subject areas

Title and Authors: "Improving Students' Programming Performance: An Integrated Mind Mapping and Generative AI Chatbot Learning Approach" by Xindong Ye, Wenyu Zhang, Yuxin Zhou, Xiaozhi Li, and Qiang Zhou.

Published On: 2025 Published By: Humanities and Social Sciences Communications