thinking … coding Erasmus Project

Project Title

thinking … coding

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for Schools Only

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2015

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Key Competences (incl. mathematics and literacy) – basic skills; Quality Improvement Institutions and/or methods (incl. school development)

Project Summary

CONTEXT: EU, through ”Education and Training 2020″, agreed that in the period up to 2020, the main goal of European cooperation should be to support the further development of education and training systems of the Member States. Education ministers from EU countries have identified some priority areas, as: all pupils should gain the competences they need, including literacy and numeracy. This will be done through modernizing curricula, learning materials and pupil assessment.
Literacy, numeracy, science, and technology are the foundation for further learning and are a gateway to employment and social inclusion. These skills are becoming even more important as the digital revolution gives rise to new forms of reading and writing, as well as diversifying sources of information.
Starting from a successful experience launched in the US in 2013 which saw the participation of about 40 million students and teachers around the world, several Eu countries began to experience by introducing structural schools of the basic concepts of ‘through computer programming (coding), using user-friendly tools and does not require an advanced skill in the use of computers.
Following the programme“Programma il Futuro” launched in Italy with the aim to provide schools a series of simple tools, fun and easily accessible form for the students to develop the basic concepts of computer science, the project “thinking… coding” worked on development of skills and materials for teachers and students, in order to adapt the school curriculum to these provisions.

The project “thinking… coding” involved the schools in a workplan aimed at:
1) Improving the skills of the staff of the school and enhance the quality of teaching and learning
2) Expanding the knowledge and understanding of the educational practices of the involved countries
3) Modernizing the involved schools contributing to a positive impact on school communities
4) contributing to the sense of belonging to Europe, as European Citizens, by creating a program with a transnational component.

The following main activities were performed:
– 4 transnational meetings (with elements from all the countries involved) which took place in the various countries involved, for project management and coordination;
– Mapping and Survey phase (needs, challenges, good practices);
– Creation of “Teaching method and flexible tools” which included: Programme Design, Initial Staff Training (in Italy), Pilot Test with children at local level (in all involved schools); Blended Mobility of students (In Slovenia);
– Multiplier Events in each of the countries involved to disseminate the project and its results (in Italy with transnational component).
The project had a good geographical balance, involving 5 countries from Southern, Northern and Central Europe, which contributed to ensure a real European outreach of the project.
The project achieved successfully the objectives proposed: for teachers to achieve good practice exchanges and also exchange of information, ideas and concrete methods of working with coding, improving skills, pedagogical and teaching tools and analysing the differences of the diverse educational systems from the partner countries regarding education, computational thinking and coding as optimizing the impact of European cooperation on the innovation of education through the activities of results dissemination; For pupils in understanding the breaking down when attacking a large complex task or designing a large complex system, choosing an appropriate representation for a problem or modelling the relevant aspects of a problem to make it manageable, as developing skills universally applicable. All materials are free downloadable in project website http://www.thinkingcoding.com where it’s possible also to try online coding applications.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 151540 Eur

Project Coordinator

I Circolo Didattico Statale “N. Fornelli” & Country: IT

Project Partners

• PALEKASTRO PRIMARY SCHOOL
• SOLSKI CENTER CELJE
• OOU Goce Delcev
• Liceul Teoretic “Tudor Arghezi”
• Ozel IKEM Ilkokulu