The Distinction and Creativity Agency (The DCA)

The DCA aims to design, train tutors, and spread a dedicated Computational Thinking curriculum (ultimately, without the use of computers) for Syrian students. 

This curriculum is to be designed for 11-12 year-olds and is to be integrated into the primary school curricula through an already established partnership with the Ministry of Education.

Through partnerships with the Syrian national curriculum development center and Damascus University. 

The DCA is working with educational experts in designing curricula, as well as domain experts in the area of computational thinking. 

The DCA is also sourcing experts in informatics and informatics engineering from Damascus University and from the National Olympiad in Informatics. 

Activities:

- Creating teachers' guides, multi-stage students' textbooks, teaching aids, etc...

- Conducting training of training, training of students.

- Tracking teaching for one year using suitable KPIs.

- Holding national content creation contests for teachers and CT-based contests for students

Outputs: 

- Teachers are equipped with adequate knowledge on teaching 11-12 year-olds on teaching computation thinking (possibly without computers).

- Teachers are supported by a community of peers and an authoritative power to deliver the required content.

- Students gain competency in computational thinking and its uses in daily life. Immediately demystifying everyday common items and tools (e.g. GPS, POS, etc...).

- Teachers are encouraged to actively participate and publish usable content.

Short-term outcomes:

- Teachers incorporate computational thinking in everyday teaching.

- Students demonstrate use of computational thinking in daily life

Long-term outcomes:

- Computational thinking literacy for all, the advantaged and the disadvantaged. Students support one another. 

- A large community of local computation thinking pioneers.

The DCA is currently at level 1; is aware of the educational gaps and is aiming to remedy those gaps by conducting a set of activities as explained above. 

However, the DCA aims to scientifically track and measure impact during the first year of implementation of the CT curriculum so that immediate challenges and opportunities can be identified. The DCA would also show that its intervention is being done in the best way possible. Here is where the LEAP programme is most beneficial.

Finally, all the data and documents are to be converted into standardized manuals and guides for the nationwide distribution of the curriculum.

Performance in one nation-wide CT challenge; namely, the Bebras Challenge

One group of 11-12 year-olds will be trained using the CT curriculum, other groups are control. 

Empowering elementary school students with computational thinking skills through curricular and co-curricular activities.

LEAP will help the DCA answer fundamental questions related to suitability and effectiveness of teaching computational thinking in selected schools. This is to be done through a model of KPIs dedicated to the education of CT in underprivileged areas.

The output of each LEAP spring move the DCA steps (and even strides) along the standards of evidence levels. This data-driven approach in education is never attempted before in the DCA and this would be a perfect opportunity to start.

The LEAP project would assist the DCA gain insight into standardizing teaching for elementary schools especially in the areas of ICT. This is a novel challenge that the DCA faces; and is expected to provide solutions to such challenge within the next few years.