In order to cope with digital change and the demands of the labour market, our children and teenagers must learn how to use the latest technologies. Even before the Corona pandemic, our Minister of Education Claude Meisch decided to modernize the school programme.
One of his main projects towards creating a modern school system is the introduction of Coding in primary schools as of the year 2020/2021. Through playful activities, children will learn how machines actually work and how to interact with them.
In a first phase, Coding will be taught as a part of the mathematics programme in cycle 4. From the school year 2021/2022 onwards, digital competences will be promoted in every cycle, with Coding running like a thread through the various subjects of the programme.
In parallel, a new course on digital sciences will be introduced for the grades 7e to 5e of secondary school. In this context, the one2one programme will also be continued, which aims to provide every pupil with an access to a tablet.
“Every child should have access to the language of the 21st century” (Claude Meisch)
To best implement the new lessons, each primary school received a starter kit with small robots and other educational material. Furthermore, the SCRIPT created a website with ideas and resources for Coding lessons – www.educoding.lu
In order to efficiently manage the digitalisation of schools, a new teaching profile has been introduced – the ‘instituteur spécialisé en compétences numériques’. For the start of the 2020/2021 school year, 15 new teachers have been recruited to advise and support their colleagues on media and coding issues. In addition, IFEN is offering a set of new training courses in computational thinking.
