As part of the CoTEDI project, we offer training sessions for teachers to introduce the concept of computational thinking and explore how it can be developed in the classroom. During these sessions, we present practical strategies and activities that can be used with students, as well as tools and guidelines for assessing the development of computational thinking. The goal is to empower educators to confidently implement and adapt these activities in their own teaching contexts.
Date: June 26th, 2025
On June 26th, 2025, a professional development session was held in the Netherlands for teacher coaches from MIK & PIW Groep, a large social organization in South Limburg with more than 1,300 educators across five educational foundations. The training session was focused on the development and assessment of Computational Thinking (CT) skills in early childhood and primary education. The session, attended by 20 teacher coaches, was led by María Zapata Cáceres (Universidad Rey Juan Carlos) and Nardie Fanchamps (Open Universiteit), and included both theoretical foundations and practical examples of inclusive CT activities from the CoTEDI project. The training was conducted in hybrid format, with María presenting online and participants attending in person at Geleen, Netherlands.
Date: March 25, 2025
On March 25, 2025, María Zapata Cáceres participated as a guest speaker in the Postgraduate Seminar Series at the Institute of Education of the University of Lisbon. This seminar, held online, was part of the academic activities of the Master’s Degree in Teaching Informatics coordinated by Professor João Piedade. The session, titled “Computational Thinking in the Classroom: From Research to Teaching with Artificial Intelligence”, explored how research-based frameworks and methodologies can be effectively applied in the classroom to develop computational thinking through the integration of artificial intelligence tools and strategies.
The presentation provided insights from international projects such as CoTEDI, showcasing how AI-based educational tools can be adapted for diverse classroom contexts. The seminar also included discussions with master’s students on pedagogical approaches, assessment practices, and curricular integration of computational thinking in informatics education.
Date: 24th March, 2025
As part of the CoTEDI project’s teacher training activities, on March 24, 2025, an in-person seminar was held at the CTIF Madrid-Sur in Spain, titled “IA Generativa: Estrategias de uso para docentes desde Infantil a Bachillerato” (Generative AI: Strategies for Teachers from Early Childhood to Upper Secondary). The session was conducted by Pablo Haya, an expert in artificial intelligence and educational innovation.
The training explored how generative AI tools, such as image and text generators, can be integrated into daily classroom practice in creative, responsible, and pedagogically meaningful ways. The workshop was designed to offer practical strategies for using these technologies across all educational levels, from early childhood education to high school.
Teachers participated in discussions and demonstrations of how generative AI can be used to foster student creativity, personalize learning, and promote critical thinking. The session emphasized the ethical implications of AI and the importance of understanding its potential and limitations in educational settings.
This event reflects CoTEDI’s ongoing commitment to empowering educators through hands-on, future-ready professional development focused on inclusive and computational thinking methodologies.
Date: March 14th, 2025
As part of the CoTEDI project’s teacher training programme, a session on Artificial Intelligence (AI) was held on March 14th, 2025, at the CEIP Pedro Duque school in Madrid. The workshop was led by Pablo Haya, an expert in digital technologies and AI, who engaged primary school teachers in a thought-provoking session on the implications, opportunities, and challenges of using AI in education.
The session introduced the teachers to key concepts of generative AI, including tools like ChatGPT, Suno, and Leonardo.Ai, exploring their potential to enhance both teaching practices and student creativity. Through live demonstrations and discussion, the participants reflected on ethical considerations, digital literacy, and strategies to integrate AI meaningfully in their classrooms.
This session not only contributed to raising awareness about emerging technologies but also reinforced the CoTEDI project’s aim to promote inclusive and future-oriented education by equipping educators with the knowledge and skills to navigate digital transformation.
Date: 4 November 2024 to 19 May 2025
From 4 November 2024 to 19 May 2025, the Comunidad de Madrid organized the third edition of a large-scale training programme designed for pre-university educators—including Early Childhood, Primary, Secondary, Vocational Training, and High School teachers. A total of 250 participants took part in this initiative, which encompassed 24 contact hours complemented by an additional 20 hours estimated for hands‑on design, implementation, and classroom application of AI-powered educational activities.
This comprehensive course guided teachers through a progressive understanding of artificial intelligence—from the foundational mechanics of AI and machine learning to practical strategies for integrating AI into everyday learning contexts (ied.edu). Participants explored the ethical dimensions of AI, such as bias, fairness, and inclusivity. They also learned to develop classroom activities using generative AI tools for text, images, and interactive multimedia projects, fostering student creativity across subjects and age groups (educa2.madrid.org, comunidad.madrid).
A number of activities and materials from this training were aligned with the CoTEDi (Computational Thinking Education for Diversity and Inclusion) project, which seeks to promote inclusive and context-adapted strategies for teaching computational thinking. In particular, the course encouraged participants to adapt AI-based resources to diverse learning needs and classroom realities, and to explore how computational thinking and artificial intelligence intersect in meaningful educational practices.
By the end of the course, educators were equipped to:
Design AI-based learning tasks tailored to different educational stages—ranging from storytelling with generative text for younger learners to algorithmic reasoning tasks for older students.
Apply critical digital literacy principles, helping learners to understand the implications of AI outputs, detect biases, and reflect on ethical considerations.
Develop project-based learning experiences that leverage AI tools for visual, audiovisual, and interactive content creation, reinforcing cross-curricular competencies aligned with current educational trends (educa2.madrid.org).
This edition positioned itself at the intersection of innovation and pedagogy, aiming to empower a large community of educators with practical tools and critical perspectives to bring AI-enhanced learning into their classrooms, while contributing to the broader objectives of the CoTEDi initiative.
Date: February 25, 2025
As part of the CoteDI project activities, a dedicated training session for teachers took place during the transnational meeting in Lisbon on February 25, 2025. The session was hosted at the EB1/JI Professor Romeu Gil School in collaboration with the Instituto Superior Técnico (IST).
The session began with a visit to the school, where participating teachers had the opportunity to observe real classroom environments and explore how computational thinking (CT) and inclusive education practices are integrated into daily teaching. Following a brief presentation of the project’s objectives and partners, Estefanía Martín Barroso and María Zapata Cáceres led a workshop focused on assessment strategies for CT in early education. The presentation included validated instruments such as the Beginners Computational Thinking Test (BCTt), the Competent Computational Thinking Test (CCTt), and other tools adapted for different age ranges and educational contexts. Teachers were actively engaged in discussions about how these tools can be implemented in their own classrooms.
The session concluded with a reflective roundtable back at IST, where teachers and project members shared experiences, discussed common challenges in promoting CT inclusively, and identified actionable practices for their local contexts.
Dates: January–March 2025
The training course “Educational Robotics for Innovative Teachers” (Robótica Educativa para Docentes Innovadores) was held at CTIF Madrid-Sur over 10 in-person sessions of 3 hours each, amounting to 30 total hours of certified professional development. It was aimed at infant school, primary and secondary school teachers from the Madrid region interested in introducing robotics in their teaching practice using innovative, competency-based approaches. The training was delivered by the CoTEDi team: María Zapata Cáceres, Estefanía Martín García, Aarón Sújar Fernández, and Fernando Martínez Martínez.
The main objective of the course was to provide teachers with the skills and strategies to incorporate educational robotics in a meaningful and curricular-integrated way. Participants explored how to design classroom activities that promote computational thinking, problem-solving, logical reasoning, and teamwork through robotics. The sessions combined theoretical foundations with extensive hands-on workshops using different robotic tools and visual programming environments, such as Matatalab, TrueTrue, and Scratch-like interfaces.
Participants learned to align robotic projects with key competencies and subject areas, fostering the development of digital competence, STEM awareness, and creative learning environments. By the end of the course, teachers created their own proposals to implement robotics-based activities adapted to their classroom needs and levels, contributing to a broader educational innovation framework supported by the Community of Madrid.
Date: December 5th, 2024
On December 5th, 2024, a training session was held at CEIP Pedro Duque (Madrid) aimed at introducing preschool and primary school teachers to key concepts of computational thinking. The session focused on practical strategies and tools to teach and assess computational thinking in the classroom, including examples and pedagogical approaches aligned with the CoTEDI project.
This event is part of the series of actions carried out within the framework of the Erasmus+ CoTEDI project, which promotes inclusive and diverse computational thinking education across Europe.
Date: May 22 and 23, 2024
As part of the CoTEDi project, two intensive training sessions on computational thinking were held at Villalkor School, a large and well-established educational institution. The sessions took place on May 22 and 23, 2024, and were attended by a large number of teachers.
On the first day, the training focused on early childhood and primary education, while the second day was aimed at secondary and high school teachers. Each session lasted between two and three hours, offering practical strategies and concrete tools to introduce computational thinking in the classroom, including unplugged and digital activities.
The sessions included an overview of the CoTEDi project and its core objectives, emphasizing the importance of computational thinking for inclusion and diversity. Teachers engaged in hands-on examples and explored how to adapt the proposed methodologies to different educational levels.
This training helped strengthen teachers’ capacity to implement inclusive and engaging practices aligned with the goals of the CoTEDi project, promoting a broader understanding of computational thinking across age groups and educational contexts.
Date: February 19th, 2024
On February 19, 2024, Pablo A. Haya Coll gave a training session at CEIP Pedro Duque (Madrid) on the use of ChatGPT for teachers in Early Childhood and Primary Education. Around 35 teachers participated in this one-hour session focused on how to generate different types of educational activities using artificial intelligence, particularly aimed at developing Computational Thinking skills. The session was part of the CoTEDi Erasmus+ project.