SUMMER 2022

At WCCE 2022 a symposium with 13 contributions about "Informatics in Primary Education: Approaches, Current Issues and Lessons Learnt", organized by Ivan Kalas, took place.

The introduction of informatics at primary level is attracting increasing attention in education systems across the world. Some countries have already embarked on this journey while others are initiating similar transformations or are beginning to explore how it can be included at this level. It is challenging process to which there are many facets and a diverse range of implementation approaches can be adopted. The complexity is also evidenced in the range of terms to describe it e.g. informatics, computing, computer science. However, for the most part, the overarching aim is to initiate compulsory and systematic development of computational thinking (CT) for all learners at primary level.

Due to this diversity and the stages of development in implementing informatics education, it is necessary and productive to share experiences, discuss strategies, successes and challenges, and inform each other about ongoing research projects and their findings. In this symposium, we examine some recent developments in those efforts including curricula, teachers’ professional development, informatics concepts and CT skills, related educational research activities and other topics of interest. We also share what are the issues encountered in various countries.
Our ultimate goal is to provide some new perspectives on current challenges.
The symposium comprises of a series of thirteen short contributions arranged in three clusters, focusing on various approaches, challenges and lessons learnt.

Presentations

SUMMER 2021

At OCCE 2021 a symposium about
"Moving on with informatics/computer science curricula – challenges and opportunities"
with our members involved will take place.
Here are some questions and issues addressed:

• What is driving the emphasis of specifications for informatics/computer science curricula in different countries?
• What do we know about how students learn some of the core concepts and processes of informatics/computer science that will enable us to design structure and progressions in curricula?
• How should we incorporate new challenges associated with rapid developments in artificial intelligence and machine learning into informatics/computer science curricula?
• What is the relationship between an informatics/computer science curriculum and other academic disciplines? 

Please feel free to have a look at it, thinking and reflecting about curriculum issues in your country.