Abstract:

This literature review aims to present computational thinking as a concept today at the heart of skills development related to science disciplines, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

If in the past, students were focused on the acquisition of skills such as writing, reading and arithmetic, the young Canadian twenty-first century citizen must to be productive in today's knowledge economy and the labor market, develop different forms of literacy which is referred to as "core competencies of the 21st century" and whose cornerstone is the identification and resolution of complex problems.

On the other hand, to address the low performance of Canada's innovation, the federal government introduced in 2007, the document "Mobilizing Science and Technology to Canada's Advantage" which defines four priority areas for public research (energy, environment, health sciences and ICT), and advocates to support innovation in these areas, the development of human capital equipped with skills in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

This will show that the development of skills related to computational thinking in appropriate learning environments, can help build in students the basic skills to undertake later professional careers in technology fields high potential of employability and innovation, and likely to have an impact on economic productivity.

Keywords:

Computational thinking, 21st centuty key skills.