Overview

The design and implementation of training programs on coding have gained momentum globally, being held in virtual and non-virtual settings, including school classrooms, informal spaces, and non-formal learning environments (labs, coding fairs, specially designed challenges, etc.). Such initiatives have been seeking to educate socially excluded groups and transform them into competent labor market players capable of reacting to the unprecedented lack of software developers in the job market, thus nurturing a new generation of technicians. The acquisition of technical skills and particularly specialized knowledge related to different programming areas has been one of the main prerequisites for both work and society. Therefore, the transfer of computer programming skills via non-formal education could be considered an efficient way to boost the communities' socio-economic level.Through the Coding for Social Promotion (Code4SP) project, the consortium is seeking to respond to the emerging demand in terms of the provision of tailor-made coding training to digitally excluded participants, including migrants, refugees, and young people from disadvantaged backgrounds (dropouts, NEET, early school leavers), through the design and implementation of a concrete operational model, able to reach a policy reform. The target above will be achieved through the upscaling of an already existing good practice, successfully delineated and applied at a local level in Germany by a networked educational community developed by CodeDoor NGO (note: CodeDoor constitutes one of the partners of Code4SP). Together with the dissemination strategy of CodeDoor, this program has been successfully resulting in top-paid programming jobs for asylum-seekers, which boosted their social integration and their socio-economic condition, thereby turning them into role-models in their communities. Particularly, over 90% of the CodeDoor's alumni have been able to find a job or an apprenticeship.