Informatikdidaktik

In Informatikdidaktik, the discipline within educational science, studies the teaching and learning of informatics (computer science) at various school levels. It investigates how curriculum content is chosen, how concepts are introduced, and how learning processes develop computational thinking and problem-solving skills. The field addresses questions of content sequencing, age-appropriate representations (from digital literacy to formal programming), and the design of teaching materials and assessment instruments.

Research domains include curriculum development, instructional design, and the study of students' preconceptions, learning difficulties, and misconceptions in informatics. The field emphasizes prerequisites such as abstraction, algorithmic thinking, and data handling, as well as progression across grades and inclusion to ensure access for diverse learners. Theoretical foundations draw on constructivism, cognitive load theory, and situated learning, while stressing authentic contexts and project-based activities.

Common didactic approaches include inquiry-based learning, project-based learning, and pair programming, often supported by tools such as visual programming environments, simulations, and computational thinking frameworks. In many countries, informatics didactics also intersects with general media education and digital literacy goals, as well as with national curricula and standards for informatics or computer science education.

Academic and professional development of teachers through teacher education programs and continuing education forms a central concern. The field produces guidelines for curriculum design, assessment of competences (competence-oriented testing, concept inventories), and evaluation studies of teaching interventions. Internationally, informatikdidaktik interacts with informatics education research in German-speaking and European contexts and contributes to the ongoing optimization of how informatics is taught in schools.