Three projects awarded funding for 4TU.NIRICT Call for Proposals for Raising Awareness in High Schools on ICT Challenges

The funding will support the development and implementation of a hands-on, project-based NLT module titled “DIY Sound Instrument & Frequency Analysis”. This module is designed to engage Dutch high school students (vwo, 4,5,6) in core ICT and Electrical Engineering concepts through creative, sound-based experimentation.

We aim to design the project in a modular format, offering optional components. In addition to the manual (which includes guidelines for DIY instrument building) and the mobile application, we will provide options such as simple circuitry and an interactive sound sculpture. This flexibility enables students and teachers to select modules that best align with their curriculum and schedule. This ensures students spend approximately 40-80 hours on meaningful, hands-on learning that integrates ICT with STEM.

The Netherlands has a shortage of skilled ICT workforce, and an even bigger shortage of female ICT workforce. Despite growing awareness, only a small fraction of computer science (CS) graduates are women. Technical universities face an even bigger challenge due to the stigma that these are “only for men” – for example, at TU Delft, currently only 16% of students entering the Computer Science & Engineering bachelor program are female, while the national average is 25%. Misconceptions about the field are an important factor leading to this shortage of ICT workforce as well as the gender imbalance. Moreover, research shows that stereotypes and lack of female role models also contribute to this gap.

We aim to 1) improve the perception of CS among high school students; and 2) address gender imbalance in CS higher education. To achieve these aims, we will introduce bioinformatics as an attractive, relatable, real-world application of CS, brought by female role models. We will provide ready-to-use, gender-inclusive teaching materials for bioinformatics in high school education, focusing on CS problems in a biological context.

Our primary goal is to enhance understanding of the mathematics and computer science behind artificial intelligence (AI) among high school students and teachers. We will develop material that teachers can use in math, computer science and NLT courses at their own school. Next to this, we will develop a related teacher training which will take place at various universities. The content focuses on AI in medical image analysis: a highly engaging topic due to its importance in society and its ethical components. We aim to reach students through math, computer science or NLT courses so that they can learn how different subjects contribute to AI.

The University of Amsterdam (UvA) has developed an initial syllabus covering the mathematics behind AI, including critical topics such as gradient descent and backward propagation. However, it lacks the computer science and application aspect. This project will extend this material to create comprehensive lesson material that can be used at high schools, integrating into mathematics, computer science and/or NLT and O&O classes. We will both extend the range of topics, as well as the scope of the existing topics to include the computer science and application perspective.

Through this material, students can learn about algorithms, matrices, convolutional neural networks, and more advanced topics in math classes. They can engage in hands-on programming exercises in computer science or NLT or O&O classes. These programming exercises will also highlight the importance of AI in real-world applications, for example in the medical domain. Can students build an image recognition algorithm that recognizes pneumonia on CT scans? We strongly believe that including these topics can create enthusiasm among students for technology