Teach Secondary Issue 14.7

Put your students’ logic skills to the test with the UK’s biggest student computing challenge… The Inside Story The UK Bebras Challenge is a free annual online competition run by the Raspberry Pi Foundation, which is designed to introduce students aged 6 to 19 in the UK to computational thinking through engaging and fun interactive puzzles. The challenge fortnight takes place in November, during which schools can run the competition on a day that suits them. To take part, at least one teacher at the school must first register as a co-ordinator. Teachers must then upload their student lists to the Bebras entry platform before the Challenge fortnight commences. On the day of the Challenge, teachers print out and issue a series of auto-generated usernames and passwords to all participating students. The challenge then proceeds under the supervision of a teacher at the school. (though we do also support a large number of home educated students, by enabling parents and guardians to register their children and supervise the challenge via a similar set of arrangements). The Bebras Challenge itself sees each participating student given 45 minutes to complete a series of age-appropriate tasks, commencing from the moment they sign in (though extra time can be allocated to those students normally entitled to it). At the conclusion of the Challenge fortnight, all submissions are automatically marked and graded via the online Bebras platform. As with any competition, it’s helpful to practise ahead of time. Past challenges are regularly published on the Bebras UK website, allowing students to familiarise themselves with the types of tasks involved. Teachers are also able to access a large repository of past questions, which they can assign as auto-marked quizzes to support their students’ preparation process. Every student who takes part in the challenge will receive a certificate of participation, and there are a number of school-level awards. In each age group we will award a Certificate of Distinction for the top 25% of students, a Certificate of Merit for the next 25% and a ‘Best in School’ award for the highest- performing student within each age category. Nationally, the top 10% of students in each age group will be awarded a Gold Certificate, in recognition of their talents and ability to perform as accomplished computational thinkers. We would love for every school in the UK to take part in Bebras. We are especially keen to reach more disadvantaged learners, including those in alternative provision settings, such as hospital schools. Over time, we’ve collected a great deal of feedback from those schools that have taken part – including this testimonial from Sharon Pendreigh, Head of Computing at Brownedge St Mary’s Catholic High School: “ We have thoroughly enjoyed delivering the UK Bebras Challenge at our school. What I’ve observed is that the Bebras Challenge helps to create a sense of achievement and confidence in our students. They are encouraged to approach problems from different angles, which not only enhances their mathematical and logical reasoning but also nurtures their curiosity and resilience. ” Contact: To join this year’s UK Bebras Challenge, visit bebras.uk ; for more on the Raspberry Pi Foundation, visit raspberrypi.org DIANE DOWLING bebras.uk [ MEET THE TEAM ] Harriet Page, Learning Manager With extensive computing education experience, Harriet supports content development for the Ada CS and Bebras team. Andrew Csizmadia, Bebras Competition Manager Having taught computing for 37 years, Andrew now manages the UK Bebras Challenge and works with the international Bebras community. BIO: Diane is Director of Curriculum and Resources at the Raspberry Pi Foundation, having previously taught A Level computer science. 2004 The Bebras Challenge begins in Lithuania and quickly spreads to other countries 2013 The UK runs The Bebras Challenge for the first time with 21,473 students 2019 The challenge grows to 317,004 students and adds a new category for visually impaired learners 2024 The Bebras Challenge becomes the UK’s largest computing challenge, with 467,190 students taking part Our Journey PA R T N E R C O N T E N T 15 teachwire.net/secondary