We aim to develop and apply coding education program that can fundamentally improve the digital literacy of elderly. This study proposes a new COBOBLOCKS education program for elderly and found out what changes there are by focusing on the digital self-efficacy of elderly.

Digital literacy education for elderly

Digital literacy education for elderly requires the development of specific content that can provide practical help and customized educational materials at a level that can be applied. In addition, effective educational methods should be selected according to elderly’s physical and cognitive functions, and the program should be applied using various tools. It is necessary to attempt to apply various fields of computer science, such as the basics of programming and robot education, which are the essence of improving digital literacy, to digital literacy education for elderly. In particular, the experience of creating and programming simple algorithms is expected to improve digital literacy and enhance cognitive abilities.

Contents of COBOBLOCKS Education Program

The coding education program used
COBOBLOCKS to reflect the characteristics of elderly who are unfamiliar with digital devices and are new to coding. Elderly people who are new to coding or unfamiliar with digital devices may find it difficult to use a computer keyboard or combine command blocks by dragging and dropping. Therefore, we developed a basic coding education program by selecting COBOBLOCKS that anyone can use. Through this coding education program, elderly construct algorithms and learn the sequential and repetitive structures of coding. The specific learning contents are as shown in Table.

Table. Contents of classes

Period	Subjects	Contents
1	Sequence	∙Introduction of program ∙Understanding LED, Sound, Dancing blocks ∙Creating a sequential algorithm ∙Sequential coding of LED, Sound, Dancing blocks
2	Sequence	∙Understanding moving blocks ∙Understanding sequential coding of moving blocks
3	Repetition	∙Understanding repeat structures ∙Create a repetition algorithm ∙Coding moving blocks using repeat structures
4	Repetition	∙Understanding infinite repetition ∙Drawing with Coding using infinite repetition structure ∙Closing

Result of the program

Coding education program with COBOBLOCKS for elderly was found to improve the digital self-efficacy of elderly. Digital self-efficacy has a positive impact on elderly’s life in retirement, such as reducing epression and increasing life satisfaction. Through coding education, elderly can learn and do new things and experience becoming part of the digital society. The results of this study proved that the coding education program can be a way to increase the sense of efficacy and life satisfaction of elderly living in the digital age.

Note that this study will be orally presented at the AEIT 2025 conference in Fukuoka, Japan in January 2025.

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