SCHIER Previous Cohorts

Participants of this cohort affiliated to

Schedule

Curriculum

Qualitative Methods with Inge Hutter, Erasmus University Rotterdam (the Netherlands)

Session description: This two-session lecture addresses various methods used for qualitative research, that is the kind of investigations where insights on activities, accounts and artefacts relative to the phenomena under study do not come from the mathematical methods which are the basis of quantitative research. Among the most relevant of these methods are interviews, focus groups, observational studies, content analysis, and data collection.

About the instructor: Inge Hutter is professor of Participatory and Qualitative Research in Population and Development at the International Institute of Social Studies (ISS), The Hague, of Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR). She is a cultural anthropologist and demographer by training and conducted qualitative research (anthropology) within a quantitative discipline (demography).

Her qualitative research projects formed the basis for her co-authored Sage book, Qualitative Research Methods, by Hennink, Hutter and Bailey (2011) of which a second edition appeared in 2020 with two additional chapters on the participatory (action) approach to qualitative research, co-authored with Christine Fenenga.

Inge is trained in several leadership styles through courses and workshops in: academic leadership; connecting leadership; professional communication from systemic work perspective; value-driven leadership and transformative leadership. She was also an instructor at SCHIER 2024.

Pedagogy and Tools with Andreas Mühling, IPN (Germany)

Session description: This two-session lecture provides an introduction to the main learning theories (e.g., behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism) and pedagogical approaches such as active learning, collaborative learning, cooperative learning and blended learning. They help describe and analyse the complex set of relationships developing between teachers and students across various learning contexts and for different learning activities. Examples of pedagogies specifically developed for teaching Informatics (e.g., pair programming, use-modify-create) and technical tools used within these (e.g., visualisation, gamification) are discussed in greater depth.

About the instructor: Andreas Mühling is heading the computer science education research group at the Leibniz Institute for Mathematics and Science Education (IPN) and at Kiel University. He focuses on empirical research in K12 computer science with a focus on programming and AI literacy both from learners and teachers persepctives.

He has co-chaired several CSE related conferences, most recently Koli Calling 2023 and 2024, has organized docotoral consortia and serves as a steering board member for the WiPSCE conference. He also currently serves as Associate Editor for Computer Science Education, as part of the steering board of the German Informatics Society's CSE group and as co-speaker of its regional chapter.

Quantitative Methods with Laura Trinchera, NEOMA Business School (France)

Session description: This two-session course equips participants with essential statistical and data analysis skills for conducting research in Informatics Education. The first session covers key concepts in descriptive statistics, along with the reasoning behind statistical inference, including tests and confidence intervals, for validating findings at the population level. Participants also learn how to perform regression analysis and ANOVA. In the second session, we introduce the basics of psychometric scale use and the analysis of latent variable models, providing a foundation for working with survey data in educational research.

About the instructor: Laura Trinchera is a Professor of Statistics and Data Science at NEOMA Business School in France. She holds a Master’s degree in Business and Economics (2004) and a PhD in Statistics (2008) from the University of Naples Federico II, Italy. Laura has been a visiting researcher at several esteemed institutions, including the University of California, Santa Barbara, the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, the University of Hamburg, Charles University in Prague, HEC School of Management in Paris, and has served as an external lecturer at ESSEC Business School, Sciences Po Paris, and Sorbonne University in Abu-Dhabi. Her research has been published in internationally recognized journals, such as Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, Journal of Production Economics, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Recherche et Applications en Marketing, International Journal of Information Management and Management Decision. She is the coordinator of the Data Science for Insights & Value Creation research group at NEOMA Business School.

Study Design & Case Studies with Jan Vahrenhold, University of Münster (Germany)

Session description: This two-session lecture addresses the identification, formulation, and articulation of research questions, discussing various ways they can be implemented, executed, and evaluated. They also cover how research papers should be written and reviewed. Additionally, a detailed analysis and discussion of one or two case studies published in the literature are provided. Special attention is paid to bias and unfounded assumptions, as well as strategies to avoid them.

About the instructor: Jan Vahrenhold has been Professor for Efficient Algorithms and Algorithm Engineering at the University of Münster since 2012. His research focuses on algorithms and data structures for geometric problems, algorithm engineering with a focus on resource efficiency and computer science education.

Jan Vahrenhold is co-editor-in-chief of "Computer Science Education" and associate editor of "ACM Inroads". He has (co-)chaired several conferences in the field of computer science and computer science education, most recently the ACM International Computing Education Research Conference (ICER 2021/2022). He is a member of the national consortium for the "International Computer and Information Literacy Study" (ICILS 2028). He is also a current member of the Informatics Europe Board, and speaker of the "Computer Science and Education" section of the German Informatics Society. He was an instructor at SCHIER 2024.

Student Self Presentations

Session description: Students attending the school are invited to very briefly (3 min. each) self present themselves: professional background and research topic(s) they are interested in.

Poster Session and Structured Poster Discussions

Session description: Once accepted, participants are invited to submit a poster describing their work, which may focus on their PhD thesis or any topic of their current interest. These posters are evaluated by the Scientific Committee, and those accepted are presented for structured discussions among participants, guided by the Scientific Committee, on both Monday and Wednesday afternoons. Posters should indicatively contain the following elements:

• a description of the problem being addressed;
• why this problem has been chosen, overall research goals and specific research questions;
• the research methods applied or considered;
• a broad research plan (optionally with contingency alternatives);
• the current status of the work and any preliminary results obtained.

IBM Presentation "Education in Quantum Computing" by Fabio Scafirimuto, IBM Research

Session description: The Wednesday afternoon session hosts an invited presentation on Education in Quantum Computing at IBM Quantum by Fabio Scafirimuto, IBM Quantum Education and Workforce Development EMEA Team Lead.

About the instructor: Dr. Fabio Scafirimuto earned his Ph.D. from ETH Zurich while conducting research at the IBM Research Lab in Zurich, specializing in experimental quantum condensed matter physics with a focus on polaritonics. He later joined IBM Quantum’s Community Team, where he contributed to the development of educational content using Qiskit. Since 2021, he has led a team within IBM Quantum dedicated to workforce development, education, and advocacy across the EMEA region.

Scientific Committee

Formed by members of the IE Education Research Working Group

• Enrico Nardelli, Università di Roma "Tor Vergata", Italy (Chair)
• Violetta Lonati, Università di Milano, Italy
• Kim Mens, Université catholique de Louvain, Belgium
• Jan Vahrenhold, University of Münster, Germany

Participants of this cohort affiliated to

What SCHIER 2024 Participants Say

"Excellent opportunity to get a comprehensive view of the scientific aspects of Informatics education and to build a network of researchers."
Sara Capecchi, University of Turin (Italy)

"Very good for PhD students at their beginning of study. Interesting topics and a very good place for networking with experts in their fields. Overall I feel full of new ideas for my research journey."
Jakub Krcho, Comenius University Bratislava (Slovakia)

"Highly prolific time with great talks and enlightenment moments that generated nice ideas for the future."
Natalia Silvis-Cividjian, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (the Netherlands)

"It is a good opportunity to find contacts from other countries and hear what is being done in your field."
Hanna Toom, Tallinn University of Technology (Estonia)

"Fruitful, informative, network sharing. Thank you indeed. You welcomed us with a smiling face and guided us well and in a helpful way during the organisation."
Emel TOPÇU, Bahçeşehir University (Turkey)

"It offers a deep dive into the subject with expert instructors, hands-on activities, and the opportunity to network with like-minded professionals, all of which make it an incredibly valuable learning experience."
Drishti Yadav, TU Wien (Austria)

"Very valuable opportunity to learn several aspects about the (Informatics Education Research) field. Excellent choice of topics and speakers. Hope to have new editions!"
Abuzer Yakaryilmaz, University of Latvia (Latvia)

Photo Gallery

*Please note that the photos below are better viewed when applying zoom out.

Schedule

The first two days covered foundational theoretical and methodological aspects of research on teaching and learning, while the subsequent sessions delved into the more practical aspects of designing and implementing research in these areas. All sessions featured a first part with a more traditional, lecture-style, material and a second part focused more on practical and hands-on work.

The program was enhanced with a behind-the-scenes look at IBM's oldest and largest European research lab, featuring special visits to their Quantum Computing Lab and Nanotechnology Center.

Monday afternoon's coffee break featured a behind-the-scenes look at IBM's Think lab. On Tuesday, participants splited into two groups: one visited the Quantum Computing Lab, and the other the Nanotechnology Center from 18:00-18:30. The groups swapped location of visit on Thursday evening.

Curriculum

Learning Science with Eleni Kyza, Cyprus University of Technology (Cypus)

Session description: The learning sciences is an interdisciplinary field that explores the mechanisms and processes involved in human learning, frequently taking place in real-life contexts. This exploration entails a nuanced examination of individual and collaborative learning scenarios, seeking to understand various sociocultural contexts, and carefully considering how the design and utilization of artefacts and tools, including technology, can shape the learning experience.

The session will begin with a presentation of the foundational aspects of the learning sciences. It will offer a retrospective analysis of the field and will explain its defining characteristics. It will also discuss the distinctive characteristics of the learning sciences, drawing connections to seminal literature and influential scholars in the field, while providing illustrative examples of pioneering work.

About the instructor: Dr. Eleni A. Kyza is a Professor of Information Society in the Department of Communication and Internet Studies at the Cyprus University of Technology, where she leads the Media, Cognition, and Learning Research Group (http://mcl.cut.ac.cy). She has a background in educational technology, cognitive science and the learning sciences, and a continuous interest in how digital technologies can support learning, critical reflection, and the development of active and informed citizens. She holds a PhD from the Learning Sciences program at Northwestern University, with a specialization in Cognitive Science, a master's degree in Technology in Education from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, a B.Sc. in Education, summa cum laude, with a concentration in Educational Media and Technology from Boston University, and a Teacher's Diploma from the Pedagogical Academy of Cyprus. Her research investigates technology-enhanced learning environments to support motivated, meaningful, and reflective practices. Her work has examined, among others, inquiry-based learning, teacher learning and professional development, scaffolding student learning, collaborative learning, and media & information literacy on social media. With her colleagues, she has developed and empirically investigated learning technologies, such as the web-based learning and teaching platform STOCHASMOS for promoting evidence-based reasoning in science education, TraceReaders, an augmented reality platform for scaffolding students’ inquiry learning in informal and non-formal contexts, and CompARe, a mixed reality (VR and AR) environment. She is the Editor-in-Chief of Instructional Science. She is the past President of the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction (EARLI) (2021-2023), a past president of the International Society of the Learning Sciences (ISLS), and an Inaugural Fellow of the ISLS.

Cognitive Science with Martin Fischer, University of Potsdam (Germany)

Session description: The lecture will introduce the foundational concepts relative to the processes of human cognition, that is how people acquire knowledge and understanding such as brain, perception, attention, memory, learning, cognitive development, problem-solving, transfer effect and cognitive load while discussing also the various levels at which cognitive processes happen and how they are related.

About the instructor: Martin Fischer is a professor of cognitive sciences with a background in attention research and motor control. He is an expert in numerical cognition. He is the leader of the Potsdam Embodied Cognition Group. After studying psychology at RWTH Aachen/Germany, Fischer worked in Massachusetts/USA from 1991-1996. He studied eye and body movements and their effects on spatial attention to obtain my PhD. After 3 years as a post-doc at the Ludwig-Maximilians-University in Munich/Germany, Fischer moved to the University of Dundee/Scotland. There he worked for 12 years on various interdisciplinary topics, such as poetry reception, humanoid robots and numerical cognition, before becoming a full professor of cognitive science at the University of Potsdam in 2011. Martin's current research focus is on embodied cognition.

Quantitative Methods with Mattia Monga, University of Milan (Italy)

Session description: The lecture will address the main issues relative to providing quantitative measures on data collected during research. They cover both descriptive statistics (e.g. dependent and independent variables, descriptive graphics, numerical descriptions), which provides ways to quantify the actual data recorded, and inferential statistics (e.g. hypothesis testing, inferential tests), which allows to possibly extend our findings beyond the actual samples.

About the instructor: Mattia Monga is an Associate Professor at Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy with the Department of Computer Science. He holds a PhD in Computer and Automation Engineering from Politecnico di Milano, Italy. He is one of the founders of the ALaDDIn group (http://aladdin.unimi.it) and the Deputy Director of the CINI National Laboratory on Computer Science and School.

Qualitative Methods with Inge Hutter;Erasmus University Rotterdam (the Netherlands)

Session description: The lecture will address the various methods used for qualitative research, that is the kind of investigations where insights on activities, accounts and artefacts relative to the phenomena under study do not come from the mathematical methods which are the basis of quantitative research. Among the most relevant of these methods are interviews, focus groups, observational studies, content analysis, and data collection.

Learn more about the instructor Inge Hutter.

Responsible Tech with Elisabeth Daly, IBM Research Europe

Session description: This session will provide an introduction to tech ethics and their implications, addressing also governance and risk models. Governance of AI Foundation Models will also be discussed.

About the instructor: Elizabeth M. Daly is a Research Scientist leading the Interactive AI Group at the IBM Research Laboratory, Dublin. She is also an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the School of Computer Science and Statistics at Trinity College Dublin.

She received her Ph.D. in Computer Science from Trinity College Dublin in November 2007 with her thesis entitled 'Social Network Analysis for Routing in Disconnected Delay-Tolerant MANETs'. Before joining IBM Research - Dublin she was a post-doctoral researcher in the IBM Research Centre for Social Software in Cambridge, MA. There her work focused on the intersection of social networks and information systems. More recently her team is researching innovative solutions for interactive AI by introducing mechanisms to facilitate AI and humans negotiate a common objective. She is on the program committee of high impact conference such as RecSys, IUI, WWW, UMAP and ICWSM. She is currently serving on the Royal Irish Academy’s committee on Engineering and Computer Science.

Study Design with Ambrish Rawat, IBM Research Europe

Session description: This session will address the identification of research questions, and their evaluation, formulation, articulation, and execution, using the approach of “Design Thinking for Research & Science”.

About the instructor: Ambrish Rawat is a Research Scientist in the AI Security & Privacy team at IBM. His research interests are at the cross-sections of security, privacy and Artificial Intelligence (AI). Most recently, he has worked on Privacy Enhancing Technologies (PETs) like Federated Learning and Differential Privacy. He is passionate about building trustworthy AI systems with security and privacy guarantees within the regulatory demands of GDPR as well as EU AI and Digital Acts.

He holds a Master of Philosophy in Machine Learning and Machine Intelligence from the University of Cambridge, UK, and a Master of Technology in Mathematics and Computing from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IIT Delhi). He joined IBM in 2016 and has since been leading and contributing to numerous efforts in AI and ML at the Dublin Research Lab.

His work has been published at top AI conferences and he's an active contributor to open source software projects. He have been recognised as Master Inventor at IBM for his contributions to IBM patent portfolio and has also received Research Division Award and several Outstanding Technical Accomplishment Awards for the contributions to the vast array of cutting-edge research at IBM.

Primary School Case Studies with Jane Waite, University of Cambridge (UK)

Session description: This session will present one to two case studies published in the literature for this level of school (6 to 10 years old), analyze and discuss them, paying attention to biases and how to avoid them.

Learn more about the instructor Jane Waite.

Secondary School Case Studies with Jan Vahrenhold, University of Münster (Germany)

Session description: This session will present one to two case studies published in the literature for this level of school (11 to 18 years old), analyze and discuss, paying attention to bias and how to avoid them.

About the instructor: Jan Vahrenhold is Professor for Efficient Algorithms and Algorithm Engineering at the Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster since 2012. His research focuses on algorithms and data structures for geometric problems, algorithm engineering with a focus on resource efficiency and computer science education.

Jan Vahrenhold is co-editor-in-chief of "Computer Science Education" and associate editor of "ACM Inroads" and "Journal of Computational Geometry". He has (co-)chaired several conferences in the field of computer science and computer science education, most recently the ACM International Computing Education Research Conference (ICER 2021/2022). He is member of the national consortium for the current "International Computer and Information Literacy Study" (ICILS 2023), member of the board of Informatics Europe, and speaker of the "Computer Science and Education" section of the German Informatics Society.

Technology and Tools with Karthik Mukkavilli, IBM Research Europe

Session Description: The lecture will present and discuss the role of tools and technology in Informatics Education and Informatics Education Research, by analyzing advantages and disadvantages. They will also cover research issues related to Human-Computer Interaction and AI-assisted education.

Learn more about Karthik Mukkavilli.

Pedagogical Approaches with Lauri Malmi Aalto University (Finland)

Session Description: The lecture will provide an introduction to the main pedagogical approaches, such as active learning, collaborative learning, cooperative learning and blended learning, which allow to describe and analyze the complex set of relationships developing between the teacher and students in the various learning contexts and for the different learning activities.

About the instructor: Lauri Malmi has been a professor of computer science at Helsinki University of Technology and Aalto University since 2001. His main research field is computing education research. He is leading the Learning+Technology research group (LeTech) which mainly focuses on improving programming education in terms of building advanced learning tools to support students and teachers, as well as analyzing their impact on students’ learning results, motivation, studying practices and teachers’ work. The group is very actively researching novel AI-driven tools in this area. His interests also include research on educational technology to support engineering education. He received the ACM SIGCSE award for Outstanding Contribution to Computer Science Education in 2020 and was nominated as ACM distinguished member in 2023.

Students’ Cases with SCHIER 2024 Scientific Committee

Session Description: SCHIER participants will be asked to present one possible research topic, on which they plan to work or have already started to work, for a joint discussion. Depending on the number of students and proposals, the work can be done in groups.

Scientific Committee

• Enrico Nardelli, Università di Roma "Tor Vergata", IE Education Research Working Group
• Mattia Monga, University of Milan (Italy)
• Ambrish Rawat, IBM Research Europe
• Mira Wolf-Bauwens, IBM Research Europe