Girls just want to have fun coding

The goal of the project was to support girls aged 8–15 in discovering IT/STEAM through innovative pedagogical approaches, and to strengthen the competences of teachers and educators in digital and...

The goal of the project was to support girls aged 8–15 in discovering IT/STEAM through innovative pedagogical approaches, and to strengthen the competences of teachers and educators in digital and gender-inclusive teaching. The project aimed to introduce teachers to new teaching methods—hackathons, creative digital activities, and storytelling—and demonstrate how these methods can increase girls’ motivation. Another key objective was to create accessible, user-friendly, and practical materials that teachers can use immediately in their classrooms. An important goal was also to present real female role models from IT/STEAM so that girls gain support, inspiration, and confidence in their abilities. Finally, the project aimed to create a sustainable digital platform that integrates methodologies, videos, activities, and tools for long-term use in schools.

The project consisted of four main types of activities: - First, partners developed methodologies for organizing hackathons and Living Library video interviews, creating a shared framework for all countries. Then, partners carried out five national hackathons for teachers and mentors, where dozens of innovative didactic ideas and lesson concepts were created. - The third activity was the creation of the Women in Code video series—authentic stories of women working in IT/STEAM, complemented by methodological cards for teachers. - The fourth activity involved building and populating the CodingGirl Educational Platform with all project outputs, followed by extensive testing during the piloting phase, which involved more than 100 teachers and hundreds of girls. - Throughout the project, intensive dissemination, training sessions, and continuous evaluation were carried out.

The project produced four main outputs: - Hackathon Methodology – a practical manual for teachers on how to organize inclusive hackathons; - Compendium of Good Practices – a collection of teaching materials and five detailed lesson plans ready for school use; - Women in Code – Living Library – almost 30 video portraits of women working in IT/STEAM, each with teaching guidelines; - Multilingual CodingGirl Educational Platform – a publicly accessible online space integrating all outputs. In addition, the project resulted in improved digital readiness of teachers, increased motivation of girls to engage in programming, strengthened gender equality in school environments, and the establishment of a functional transnational partnership. The piloting phase demonstrated strong impact—over 90% of teachers rated the platform as useful, and girls reported a significant increase in interest in technology.