@article{DagieneStupuriene2015, author = {Dagiene, Valentina and Stupuriene, Gabriele}, title = {Informatics Education based on Solving Attractive Tasks through a Contest}, series = {KEYCIT 2014 - Key Competencies in Informatics and ICT}, journal = {KEYCIT 2014 - Key Competencies in Informatics and ICT}, number = {7}, publisher = {Universit{\"a}tsverlag Potsdam}, address = {Potsdam}, issn = {1868-0844}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-82626}, pages = {97 -- 115}, year = {2015}, abstract = {The paper discusses the issue of supporting informatics (computer science) education through competitions for lower and upper secondary school students (8-19 years old). Competitions play an important role for learners as a source of inspiration, innovation, and attraction. Running contests in informatics for school students for many years, we have noticed that the students consider the contest experience very engaging and exciting as well as a learning experience. A contest is an excellent instrument to involve students in problem solving activities. An overview of infrastructure and development of an informatics contest from international level to the national one (the Bebras contest on informatics and computer fluency, originated in Lithuania) is presented. The performance of Bebras contests in 23 countries during the last 10 years showed an unexpected and unusually high acceptance by school students and teachers. Many thousands of students participated and got a valuable input in addition to their regular informatics lectures at school. In the paper, the main attention is paid to the developed tasks and analysis of students' task solving results in Lithuania.}, language = {en} } @article{DagieneJevsikovaSchuleetal.2013, author = {Dagiene, Valentina and Jevsikova, Tatjana and Schule, Carsten and Sentance, Sue and Thota, Neena}, title = {A comparison of current trends within computer science teaching in school in Germany and the UK}, series = {Commentarii informaticae didacticae : (CID)}, journal = {Commentarii informaticae didacticae : (CID)}, number = {6}, publisher = {Universit{\"a}tsverlag Potsdam}, address = {Potsdam}, issn = {1868-0844}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus-64504}, pages = {63 -- 75}, year = {2013}, abstract = {In the last two years, CS as a school subject has gained a lot of attention worldwide, although different countries have differing approaches to and experiences of introducing CS in schools. This paper reports on a study comparing current trends in CS at school, with a major focus on two countries, Germany and UK. A survey was carried out of a number of teaching professionals and experts from the UK and Germany with regard to the content and delivery of CS in school. An analysis of the quantitative data reveals a difference in foci in the two countries; putting this into the context of curricular developments we are able to offer interpretations of these trends and suggest ways in which curricula in CS at school should be moving forward.}, language = {en} }