This document discusses teaching methods and tools for coding and computational thinking. It provides definitions of coding and computational thinking, noting that coding is a type of computer programming. It then describes priorities and policies around ICT/informatics and coding education in Macedonia, including establishing a framework for European cooperation, developing online resources through an education portal, and using educational software like ToolKid to teach basic informatics literacy. It also analyzes the current state of informatics education in Macedonia and reforms being made to curriculums to incorporate more programming and algorithmic thinking earlier.

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Teaching Method and Flexible Tools
COMPARATIVE STUDY
MACEDONIA
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This
publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held
responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.

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COMPARATIVE STUDIES
1.2 General description of “computational thinking and
coding”
Computer programming is the process of developing and implementing various sets of
instructions to enable a computer to perform a certain task, solve problems and
provide human interactivity. These instructions (source codes which are written in a
programming language) are considered computer programs and help the computer to
operate smoothly.
Coding on a technical level is a type of computer programming that closely or exactly
represents what happens at the lowest (machine) level. However, when most people
talk about coding, they usually mean something at a higher, more human-readable
level which could be anything from problem-orientated languages like Java, C++ or
PHP.
Often computer programming (when referring to software) and coding are used
interchangeably and refer to more or less the same activities of writing the instructions
(recipe) for the computer to perform a specific task following a logic. However, based
on the definitions above, coding can also be seen as a specific sub-task of software
computer programming which arranges the implementation of the algorithm in the
target programming language.
Programming/ computational thinking: “to be able to define a set of instructions to
reach a given goal from a given starting point; to be able to write a concrete set of
instructions for a computer to let the computer run a certain task.” (Belgium Flanders).
Programming: “The ability to realise an algorithm in a computer programming
language, that is to interpret the steps of the algorithm as instructions in a
programming language, as a computer programme, to compile, run and debug the
programme, as well as to identify and reuse common design patterns.”

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1.2 Application of coding in the educational system of the
involved countries
Each school has to develop the description of the current situation in its
country:
Basic information Please write here thepriorities forteachersand studentstraining, and
otherrelevant policies in yourcountry/region aboutICT/informatics in
generaland codingand computational thinking specifically thatyou
as expertconsiderusefulto includein this research.
We identified priorities and objectivesto be achieved in accordanceto
the decisionsthatthe SchoolBoard of teachershas reached,taking
into consideration teacher'sneedsand thedecisionsthatthe European
Union hastaken in the last yearsin the field of the educationalprocess.
We put a special emphasizeto establishing a solid frameworkfor
European cooperation in ICTeducation and training,based on common
objectiveswiththe basic aimto encourage innovativeideas of pupils
and teachersand improvethe educationalsystemthrough various
computertrainings,developing complementary instruments at
European level and adopting itat the sametime to ournational
curriculum.Having into consideration theprojectof the Macedonian
Governmentfora computerforevery child, we recognized thefirst
element of priority in the digital aspectwith specialemphasizeto the
field of using computertechnology in learning foreign languagesat
schooland choseour partnersaccording to the samepriorities. The

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second element of priority wasbased on therecognition of the
importanceof cooperation among European schoolswhich leadsto
significantresultsin supporting of Nationalreforms,regarding the
developmentof common European ICTtoolswhich will be able to
promotethequality and promoting open educationalprocessready to
adoptto the newchallengesof ournew,digital society,improving
competencesof bothteachersand pupilsin a long termlearning
perspective.The third priority wasto strengthen theprofile of the
teaching profession in orderto promotedemocraticvalues,social
cohesion,activecitizenship and integration of new modern approaches
and practices,reinforcing transitionsbetween formaland non formal
education,training and ICTcompetencesof young people,ensuring a
better recognition of the gained competences.
PORTALOF PRIMARY ANDSECONDARYSCHOOLSThis educational
portal linksthe teachersandthe studentsfromall primaryand
secondaryschoolsina virtual workingenvironment.The education
portal wouldprovide on-lineresourcesforthe school directors,
teachersandthe studentsandwouldenable themtoeasilyshare their
experiencesandpractices.The educationportal will markthe
beginningof anewqualityof the educationsystem inMacedonia,thus
bringingitclosertothe moderneducationtrendsandpracticesinthe
world.
COMENIUS LOGO ANDTOOLKID IN PRIMARY SCHOOLSBecause of the

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lack of educational software inMacedonianandAlbanianlanguage,
the e-School.mkprojectidentifiedToolKidsoftwarerepresentsa
comprehensive educationalresource centerandresearchtool forthe
needsof all primaryschool studentsfromgradesIto IV.Thissoftware
representsthe startingpointforthe future developmentof similar
software bylocal capacities.One of the maine-School project
activitieswastranslation,localization,andadaptationof the software
package titledìToolKIDî,basedonComeniusLogo,foruse byK-4
children.Thiseducational software,togetherwithfourmanualswas
donatedto100 primaryschoolsthroughoutMacedonia.Besides,a
large numberof teacherspassedthe trainingforusingthissoftware.
Thisprocesscontinues.[2] Figure 5:The entryscreenof ToolKidThe
ToolKideducationalsoftware couldbe useful inall subjectsof K-4
education(mothertongue,mathematics,nature andsociety,society,
art educationandmusiceducation).Itorganizationissuchthatenable
studentstoacquire firminformaticsliteracyandculture.The primary
educationisthe rightplace where the studentsneedtoobtainbasic
informaticsknowledge.The curriculumneedstofollowthe informatics
knowledge trendsandtobe redesignedincompliance withthem.
In thispackage are includedprogramsprovide all activities
implementedinnational school curriculumforworkingwith
computersinprimaryschool.The software programsincludedin
package are classifiedin7maingroups:Educational games,Drawing

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Programs,TextPrograms,SoundPrograms,AnimationandVideo,
MultimediaPrograms,AlgorithmicandProgramming.The resources
createdwithone program, like backgrounds,animation,images;
soundscan be usedinother innative andeasywayby children.Itis
importantandcreative forthemwhentheyare goingto work on it.
The current state inthe informaticseducationof inMacedoniadoes
not correspondwiththe objectivesMacedoniansocietyhas.Inthe
time whenall governmenteffortsleadstothe buildingof information
society,the numberof classesforthe subjectinformaticsislowest
comparingwithanyothersubject.Inparticular,underthe current
curriculum,the informaticsistaughtwith2 classesperweekinthe 6th
grade and 1 classper weekinthe 7 grade of primaryschool and
between2and 6 classesinall for yearsof secondaryschool .In
2010/11 the Ministerof Educationbroughtamendmentstothe
curriculumof the eightyearsprimaryeducation.Bythisdecision,the
newsubjectProgramming wasaddedtothe listof electivesubjectsin
VIIand VIIIgrade with2 classesperweek,i.e.72 classesperyear.This
supplementisessential forthe educationininformatics,because
pupilsinprimaryeducationwillbe introducedtothe basicsof
programming,asone of the mostimportantparts incomputer
sciences.Moreover,thissubjectwillstimulate the algorithmicthinking
of students,asa creative componentthatsuccessfulexpertspossess.
Additionally,thiswayof thinkingandreasoningshouldbe encouraged

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at a youngerage,sothe efforts are towards the inclusionof
programmingearlierasanobligatorysubjectaswell asthe inclusionof
elementsof logical algorithmicthinkinginthe lowergrades.According
to the newcurriculumforthe nine-yearprimaryeducation,elective
subjectsininformaticsare offeredfromthirdgrade. The subject“Work
withcomputer”isa facultative forthe pupilsinIIIgrade andelective in
IV or V grade.In the last three yearsof primaryschool pupilshave the
opportunitytoelecttwosubjectsrelatedtoinformaticsandcomputer
sciences,ProjectinInformaticsandProgramming. Inthe Secondary
schools, the contentforthe mandatorysubjectInformaticsinthe first
yearand the mandatorysubjectInformaticsandelectivesubject
InformationTechnologyinthe secondyearof studieswasratherthe
same as the contentof subjectsinprimaryeducationandonly
involvedteachingcomputerapplicationsforwordprocessing,work
withspreadsheets,basicgraphicsandpresentations.Becausechanging
the curriculumismuch more complex process,the firststepwas
directedinmodificationof the contentof these subjects,incorporating
topicsfromotherareas of computerscience.Aftermodifications,one
half of the newcurriculuminthe firstyearismostlyconcentratedon
deepeningthe knowledge gainedinprimaryschool aboutoffice
applicationsandInternet.The secondhalf introducesprogramming(in
C++). Since the programmingisthe hardestpart and mostof the
studentsare introducedtoitfor the firsttime,itisdividedintwo

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parts,one inthe firstsemesterandthe otherinthe secondsemester.
Topicsthat are treatedinthe firstyearare: Hardware (6 classes),
Software (6classes),Programfortextprocessing(6classes) ,
ProgramminginC++ (36 classes) ,Programfor spreadsheet
calculations(10classes),ComputernetworksandInternet(8classes.)
In the secondyear,the emphasisisagainplacedonthe programming,
and there are othertopicscoveringdifferentareasof computer
science.The topicMultimediaandcomputergraphicsisprevalentin
numberof classes,asthe topicwhichwouldbe interestingfor
studentsandwill awakentheircreativity.The topicsinthe secondyear
are Databases(12 classes),Programming(22classes) ,Multimediaand
computer graphics(24classes),HTML(14classes).Therefore,exceptthe
setof keyconceptsthatare essential if schoolchildrentounderstand
the networkedworldinwhichtheyare growingupourchildrenneed
to learna newwayof thinkingaboutproblem-solving- computational
thinking,understandthe difference betweenhumanandartificial
intelligence,learntothinkingrecursively,beingalerttothe needfor
prevention,detectionandprotectionagainstrisks,usingabstraction
and decompositionwhentacklinglarge tasks,anddeployingheuristic
reasoning,iterationandsearchto discoversolutionstocomplex
problems.

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Strategies Please, describe here how these policies are developed and
implanted in your country/region
Everyschool triesto promote innovative approaches andprograms
incorporatedin everysubjectwith30percent, whichaddressthe
pupils,byusingICT-basedmethodologies.Italsocatersstudents’
needsof adoptingnewandeasierwaysof linguisticandlanguage
learning,takingintoaccounteachothers'diversity.Recentlyavailable
communicationtechnologies,particularlyassociatedwiththe Internet
but alsowithtabletsandsmart phones are being integratedinto the
conventional modalitiesof the teaching/learningprocess.Teachers
can benefitfromthe studentsabilityinusingcomputersandInternet
devices since modernstudentsbelongtothe 3rd generationof digital
natives inorderto developstudents' skillsinspeakingEnglish,to
developandimprove theirinformationprocessingskills byintroducing
codingactivities andtocriticallyinvestigate the Internet,so both
teachersandlearnerscan take advantage of technologyandof the
newlearningopportunitiesofferedbyit.
There are manythingsthat movedthe thingsinthe rightdirectionin

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the last twoyearsin Macedonianeducation.The new computersand
computerequipment,andbroadbandfastspeedInternetare now
realityinthe mostof the Macedonianschools.Thisisa resultof the
outstandingeffortsof the Government,aswell as,previousand
currentprojectsin the fieldof ICTinMacedonianeducation.The large-
scale computerizationof the Macedonianeducationisacrucial part of
the processof creatinganddevelopmentof the Macedonian
InformationSociety.The situationwithsoftware isquitedifferent.
There isan evidentlackof educational softwareonMacedonian
language.The ToolKidpackage isagood example of suchsoftware,but
itstarget groupsare justK-4 teachersandstudents.The educational
portal is alsoveryuseful,butitneedsfurtherdevelopmentand
improvements.Thissituationisagreatchallenge foruniversity
teachers,primaryandsecondaryteachers,andbusinessITsector.
Teachers,parents,students,educational authorities,managersof the
ICT projectsineducation,are the mainactors inthe processof
computerizationof the Macedonianeducation.Theyare facedwith
manychallenges:creationof educationsoftware anddigital
educational material,properimplementationof ICTineducationfor
learning,teaching,managingandadministering,trainingsforteachers
inthe frameworkof theirprofessionaldevelopmentandcontinuous
education.We needthe synergyof all actors,mentionedabove,in
orderto followthe wayof the developedcountries.

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Links Sources : websites, e-mails, studies ,etc
Janceski M. and Pacovski V., Macedonian experience, needs,
challenges,Selectedpapersof the InternationalConference Olympiad
in informatics-Country experiences and developments, Zagreb,
Croatia, pp. 66−78, August 2007. [2] USAID Macedonia press releases
http://macedonia.usaid.gov/english/EDU/Macedonia_Connects.htm
http://macedonia.usaid.gov/english/EDU/E-schools_eng.htm
http://macedonia.usaid.gov/English/EDU/pep.htm [3] M. Kon-
Popovska, M. Janceski and M. Jovanov, ìICT trends and challenges for
researchin Macedoniaî in Proceedings of the III Balkan Conference in
Informatics (BCI 2007) WorkshopîBridging the Digital Divide in
South_Eastern Europe (SEE), Sofia, Bulgaria, pp. 35-111, September
2007. [4] Portal of primary and secondary schools in Macedonia
http://schools.edu.mk

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questionnaire to teachers who have used the coding
Please, collect at least 5 questionnairesubmitted to teachers who
implemented computational thinkingand coding activities
Questionnaire no. 1
General information
1-Name, Surname:
ElizabetaFilipova
2- Name Of The School:
Tode Hazi Tefov
3- What level of education DO you teach?
a) Primary education;First stage of basic Education
b) Lower secondary education;Second stage of basic education
c) (Upper) secondary education
1. Does your school offer IT / Informatics / coding lessons?
a)Yes
b) No
If your answer is yes, CE? Informatics lessons
2. When schools participatedin the development of the code,
how would you judge the involvementof the following actors?
very
important
important not very
important
not important at all
Headteacher 5
School board/council 5
Teachers 5

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Parents 4 1
Students 5
3. What level of educationare these lessons?
a. Primary education;First stage of basic Education
b. Lower secondary education;Second stage of basic
education
c. (Upper) secondary education
4. Please describe the content that you teach
I teach English (vocabulary and basic grammar for younger
learners)
5. Are your students interested in ITC/Informatics/Coding
lessons?
A. Yes
B. No
Questionnaire no. 2
Lower secondary education;
Second stage of basic education

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(Upper) secondary education
1-Name, Surname:
Nikolinka Ilieva
2- Name Of The School:
Goce Delcev
3. Does your school offer an AP ComputerScience Java Course?
a) Yes
b) No
If your answer is yes:
4. What is the number of pages of the code?
a) Less than five pages
b) Between five and 6 pages
c) Between ten and twenty pages
d) More than twenty pages
5. Do you think it is useful to teach students create games by using
Java?
a) Yes
b) No
3.1 Interpretation questionnaire to teachers who have used
the coding

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Searching and sharing of good practices
Please, describe 5 good practices with selection of innovativetools
for students and teaching methods for teacher
2.2 Primary education; First stage of basic Education
2.3 Lower secondary education; Second stage of basic
education
2.4 (Upper) secondary education
NAME of the PROGRAM/PROJECT
1. Microsoft Visual C++/C # 2010 Express Edition
RESPONSIBLE INSTITUTION
Visual Studios
PARTNERS
Kids, teenagers, parents and teachers
1.SHORT DESCRIPTION: This program allows you to make a model(Form) of
a program and then give commands to it so it can be used in practice. Its
smart system allows it to adapt to mathematical problems such as making a
calculator or many different things. Name of the method/tool: The name of
the method that I used is called event click which allows you to do one code
for every number/click on the program essentially getting smarter with the
studio and create newer ways of coding than just making one for all of the
buttons. We focus on Microsoft Visual C++/C#2010, the programming
language and online community developed by Microsoft. It makes it easy for
young people to create their own interactive maths projects - like maths
games, maths calculations through discovering ne ways of codes - and then
share their results with others in an active, online community.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QirqrcOVeXU
First what you need to do is get some buttons, label, Text Box etc then

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rename the buttons. After that you need to start the codes by making an
event click for the operators and for the Arithmetic keys. Then you open the
key you want to start coding and start the line of codes.
Which is the student' s role?
Pupils have fan with games that offer many possibilities for solving
mathematical problems through the language of coding
Which is the teacher's role?
GUIDE – FACILITATOR
WEBSITE
www.microsoft.com (Visual C++ Restributable)
CONTACTS FOR INFORMATION
Visual Studios @GooGle

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2.NAME of the PROGRAM/PROJECT
CSUNPLUGGED
RESPONSIBLE INSTITUTION
CS Education Research group
PARTNERS
Many computer advisers and contributors
SHORT DESCRIPTION:
Each Unplugged activity is available to download in PDF format, with full instructions
and worksheets. Background sections explain the significance of each activity to
computer science, and answers are provided for all problems. All you need for most of
these activities are curiosity and enthusiasm. There are photos and videos showing some
of the activities in action, and also collected links to other useful resources. The activities
are primarily aimed at the five to twelve year-old age group, but they are by no means
restricted to this age range: It is used to teach older children and adults too, with little
modification. Students will: Recognize situations where they can create programs to complete tasks,
predict moves necessary to get teammate from start to finish, Convert movements into symbolic
instructions and relate algorithms as programs to teammates. Unplugged presents fundamental
concepts in Computer Science such as algorithms,artificial
intelligence, graphics,information theory, Human Computer Interfaces,programming
languages, and so on. We want to emphasize that programming is a means, not an end.
The activities tend to be kinaesthetic, often on a large scale and involving team work.
The activities tend to allow students to discover answers for themselves, rather than just
being given solutions or algorithms to follow. A constructivist approach is encouraged
(where the teacher uses the scaffolding provided by Unplugged to ask questions that

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lead them to discover the knowledge themselves), as we want students to realize that
they are capable of finding solutions to problems on their own, rather than being given
a solution to apply to the problem. For example, students don’t really need to be able to
convert numbers to binary, but it is valuable for them to discover the patterns such as
the doubling value of bits, patterns when you count in binary, and how the range
increases exponentially as you add bits.
WEBSITE
http://csunplugged.org/activities/
CONTACTS FOR INFORMATION
admin@cosc.canterbury.ac.nz
3.NAME of the PROGRAM/PROJECT
THINKERSMITH’S
RESPONSIBLE INSTITUTION
CSED Week site
PARTNERS
Teachers, students and parents
Short description: Students will learn to convert real-world activities into
instructions , gain practice in coding instructions with symbols , gain understanding
of the need for precision in coding , gain practice debugging malfunctioning code .
Students will be able to understand the usefulness of functions and parameters
(grades 7+). Using a predefined “Robot Vocabulary” your students will figure out
how to guide one another to accomplish specific tasks without discussing them first.
This segment teaches students the connection between symbols and actions, as well
as the valuable skill of debugging. Students will learn how to convert real-world activities
into instructions and the need for precision while coding. After practicing robotics with symbols
and plastic cups, children convert oursymbol instructions to pseudocodes using the “While -Do

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-End While” looping structure for the repetitive actions our robots needed to execute.
WEBSITE
http://www.thinkersmith.org/
CONTACTS FOR INFORMATION
info@thinkersmith.org
4.NAME of the PROGRAM/PROJECT
CODESPARK
RESPONSIBLE INSTITUTION
Codespark Organization
PARTNERS
Computer science teachers and professors from Harvey Mudd, Princeton, and
Lincoln Public Schools.
Short description: The codeSparkcurriculumis based onthesamefoundational
research thatScratch and ScratchJrarebased. web and mobile gamesthat teach
kids how to code,even before they knowhow to read and write
effectively .CodeSpark’s games were developed for kids 4 to 9 years old, and with
a goal of not just web and mobile gamesthat teach kids how to code,even
before they know how to read and write effectively. CodeSpark
Academywith the Foos is basically an extended versionof The Foos
Coding,which includes puzzlesand exercisesthat let kids design,
program and sharetheir own games,or “remixes”of games thatother
kids creaCodeSpark makesits gamesavailable for freeto public
schools,libraries and nonprofits.Individualusers,typicallyparents
who want their kids to play the gamesat home,can buy and download
codeSpark games for phones and tablets. The Foos is the mostuseful
way for kids to learn codingand computer science.

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WEBSITE
thefoos.com/hour-of-code/
CONTACTS FOR INFORMATION
support@codespark.org
5.NAME of the PROGRAM/PROJECT
CODING WITH PAPER
RESPONSIBLE INSTITUTION
Fractus team
PARTNERS
Computer advisers, parents and teachers
Short description: While most apps and tutorials do require internet
connected computers or mobile devices, it does not mean that schools without
this level of technology cannot get involved. In fact, coding with paper can be
an even more engaging and meaningful way to introduce students to early
programming concepts. The activities teach students the connection between symbols and
actions, as well as the valuable skill of debugging. If time allows, there is an option to introduce
functions at the end of the lesson. A heavy emphasis is for the children to start thinking
algorithmically and to start “thinking in code”. Being able to do so, and being able
to execute code in their head, is one of the core learning objectives and something that
they will find useful throughout their programming journey. Fractus Learning is a
global team of expert educators, leaders, makers and creators working
passionately to share the best techniques, tools and toys for meaningful
learning.From coding and robotics, to board games and books, they work
directly with educators, advertisers, entrepreneurs and developers to promote
the latest and greatest products and practices impacting learning today.
WEBSITE
https://www.fractuslearning.com/2014/11/18/coding-with-paper-printable-
game/

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CONTACTS FOR INFORMATION
https://www.fractuslearning.com/contact/