• At the beginning of 2025, Progress Foundation is launching a call to public libraries, schools and NGOs to open new CODE Kids clubs in rural and small urban areas for children aged 10 to 14.
• In these clubs, children learn programming for free, following a well-structured two-year curriculum that starts at the beginner level and progresses to advanced topics. Activities include Coding – basic programming from scratch, Arduino – robotics and technology, Creation – IT projects, mobile apps, video editing, games, animations, Soft Skills – numerous webinars on personal development topics, in-person training in clubs, Practical Applications – constructions (bridges, models, etc.), and other activities to develop digital skills through technological projects.
• Club coordinators do not need technical or programming knowledge, as activities are conducted based on clear written materials and video tutorials, periodically prepared and provided by CODE Kids technical team.
• The first step to opening a CODE Kids club is to fill out this form: https://forms.gle/y3WA4rFQURuDjjma8, after which you will go through the remaining administrative steps together with the project team.

Progress Foundation is making a national call to all interested public libraries, schools and even NGOs with related missions to join their initiative and open CODE Kids Clubs in rural and small urban areas, where children can learn programming for free.

WHO can open a CODE Kids Club? Librarians from public libraries, teachers or school staff from local schools and employees or volunteers from NGOs interested in coordinating these clubs locally, following the curriculum and with the technical support provided by CODE Kids team.

WHY should you promote this project in your community? It’s simple, because:

• CODE Kids project is primarily offered to children from rural and small urban areas, helping them look confidently towards the future, knowing they will be among the lucky ones who will find a job and have a chance for prosperity.
• Institutions hosting these clubs are included in an open list of collaborators for whom we try each year to obtain IT equipment (computers, laptops, tablets, etc.), depending on the sponsorships obtained by Progress Foundation.
• Programming is an essential skill for children preparing to enter the job market in the next decade. Studies from Oxford University and the World Economic Forum indicate that technology will deeply impact the way we work in the future and what types of skills or fields will be favored due to massive waves of robotization and automation.
• Additionally, the ICILS 2023 Report shows that nearly half of Romanian students score at a level indicating major difficulties in basic digital skills. Specifically, Romanian 8th-grade students achieved the lowest scores in Europe in this assessment conducted by the prestigious IEA (International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement).

In 2024 alone, there were 247 active CODE Kids clubs across 40 counties in Romania and in the Republic of Moldova, with over 2.500 children benefiting from CODE Kids courses. Approximately 1.150 children completed the beginner level (at least 2/3 of activities completed), around 1.050 children completed the advanced level (at least 2/3 of activities completed), totaling around 12.000 children who have participated in this program since its inception in 2017.

In 2025, we also conducted the Social Return on Investment (SROI) report for CODE Kids 2024. The analysis resulted in a 1:9.04 ratio, showing that for every 1 RON invested in the project, the social value created is 9 RON.

The new CODE Kids beginner groups will start activities in March 2025, so by then, the representative of your library, school or NGO can start recruiting children to form a beginner group of at least 10 children aged 10-14.

“In 2025, we will continue activities validated by external evaluators, activities that build strong programming and robotics skills for our participants. But we also want to stay in line with what matters in the field, so we will experiment with tasks that familiarize children with Artificial Intelligence and basic competencies in cybersecurity. Being a private initiative, we have the flexibility to shape our curriculum accordingly, ensuring that CODE Kids club participants gain useful, modern skills,” said Camelia Crișan, CEO of the Progress Foundation.

More media materials about our project and its previous year’s actions can be found here:

• https://www.protv.ro/emisiuni/i-like-it/clip/60062-i-like-it-proiectele-copiilor-din-programul-code-kids-gata-de-prezentare
• https://tvrinfo.ro/bicicleta-care-produce-suficienta-energie-electrica-pentru-a-incarca-un-telefon-premiata-la-targul-de-stiinta-code-kids-programul-gratuit-de-invatare-a-programarii-o-sansa-pentru-copiii-din-mediul/
• https://www.progressfoundation.ro/premiile-targului-national-de-stiinta-codekids-2024/

Follow us on Social Media for more https://www.facebook.com/progressfoundation.ro/ and subscribe to our newsletter: https://bit.ly/AbonareNewsletterProgress

About CODE Kids

CODE Kids is a free program developed by the Progress Foundation, providing a digital literacy solution for children in rural and small urban areas. It was created in response to the fact that nearly 50% of rural children score below 5 in the National Evaluation in mathematics. Since 2017, the Progress Foundation has initiated, piloted and refined programming education for children aged 10-14 in rural areas using public libraries as learning spaces and librarians as learning facilitators. Our methodology is based on Sugata Mitra’s foundational research – the SOLE (Self-Organizing Learning Environment) model, also known as the School in the Cloud model.

The project aims to create a national movement in coding and STEM, where children, youth, librarians and volunteers from rural and small urban areas develop digital skills and engage with their communities by solving creative digital challenges. In 2023 alone, the Progress Foundation coordinated 227 active programming clubs in public libraries, schools or NGOs in rural and small urban localities, across 40 counties in Romania, plus 30 clubs in the Republic of Moldova. In 2024, we had 247 clubs, 213 across Romania and 34 in the Republic of Moldova. Over 12.000 children have learned programming basics and gained STEM competencies (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) since the program’s inception. The program won 3rd place in the Education and Learning category at the 2023 Civil Society Gala.

CODE Kids is a national IT and STEM education initiative for children, implemented by the Progress Foundation with financial support of the Romanian-American Foundation.

For more information, please visit www.codekids.ro

About Progress Foundation

Progress Foundation is a non-governmental organization founded in 1996 in Bistrița, contributing to the development of community institutions, vulnerable individuals and groups and empowering people through education, technology, research and innovation. The organization supports citizens in evolving, realizing their potential and achieving well-being in sustainable and resilient communities. Through partnerships, Progress Foundation focuses on lifelong learning facilitation, innovation transfer, IT and STEM competency creation and developing new methodologies for participatory design and social inclusion. To reach any social group, the organization uses public libraries and community spaces in villages and cities as focal learning points and social innovation centers.

For more information, please visit www.progressfoundation.ro