The Importance of Digital and Computer Science Education in Primary

Schools: Perspectives from Educators

Marina Unterweger

, Corinna H

ormann

, Lisa Kuka

and Barbara Sabitzer

Department of STEM Education, Johannes Kepler University, Altenberger Straße 68, 4040 Linz, Austria

{marina.unterweger, corinna.hoermann, lisa.kuka, barbara.sabitzer}@jku.at

Keywords:

Primary School, Digital Education, Computer Science Education, Professional Development, 21st Century

Skills.

Abstract:

Education is at a crossroads, where traditional methods meet the growing demand for innovation in teaching.

As the nature of knowledge and skills evolves, educators are challenged to rethink how foundational subjects

are taught and how emerging competencies are introduced to young learners. This study examines the inte-

gration of computer science and digital education in Austrian primary schools, identifying the main obstacles,

relevant topics as well as teachers’ professional development requirements. Data was collected through a sur-

vey distributed to 202 teachers who participated with their pupils in a creative, unplugged circus workshop at

the COOL Lab, Johannes Kepler University’s innovative teaching laboratory for all ages specializing in com-

puter science and digital education. The survey included both qualitative and quantitative components to gain

in-depth understanding. The results indicate a signiﬁcant gap between the implementation of computer science

and digital education as well as teachers’ conﬁdence in these areas. Key barriers affecting the implementation

of these topics include lack of resources and time, limited teacher knowledge and conﬁdence as well as the

prioritization of core subjects. The ﬁndings of this study highlight the need for targeted professional develop-

ment and increased support to effectively integrate digital and computing literacy into primary education.

1 INTRODUCTION

The rapid digitalization of our daily lives has made

digital literacy essential for individuals to actively

participate in modern societies. Globally, there has

been a concerted push to integrate digital literacy

and computer science education into school curric-

ula, with the aim of equipping young learners with

the tools they need to thrive in a technology-driven fu-

ture. The European Commission’s Digital Education

Action Plan (2021–2027) underscores this urgency by

emphasizing the need to prepare learners for a digital

economy and to achieve EU-wide digital literacy tar-

gets, such as ensuring that at least 80% of the popula-

tion has basic digital skills by 2030 (Eurydice, 2022).

Starting digital education and computer science at the

primary level offers an opportunity to foster compu-

tational thinking, problem solving abilities, and digi-

tal literacy early in life. These skills not only lay the

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5772-0672

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4770-6217

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0000-5915

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1304-6863

foundation for academic and professional success, but

also empower children to become informed and en-

gaged citizens. The value of introducing computer

science at this stage is further highlighted by research

that links early exposure to programming and digi-

tal concepts with enhanced cognitive abilities such as

reasoning, creativity, and metacognition. However,

the integration of digital and computer science edu-

cation into primary school curricula remains uneven

across Europe. While some countries, such as Greece

and Poland, have long recognized computer science

as a compulsory subject, others have yet to adopt sys-

tematic approaches to teaching this discipline. Chal-

lenges such as lack of teacher training, insufﬁcient

resources, and competing curricular priorities often

hinder progress (Eurydice, 2022). This study aims

to address these gaps by investigating the integration

of computer science and digital education in Austrian

primary schools. Speciﬁcally, it seeks to identify key

barriers to implementation, relevant topics for early

learners, and the professional development needs for

teachers. Through a mixed-methods survey involv-

ing 202 teachers who participated in a creative, un-

plugged workshop at the COOL Lab, the research

Unterweger, M., Hörmann, C., Kuka, L. and Sabitzer, B.

The Importance of Digital and Computer Science Education in Pr imary Schools: Perspectives from Educators.

DOI: 10.5220/0013353100003932

Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

In Proceedings of the 17th International Conference on Computer Supported Education (CSEDU 2025) - Volume 2, pages 545-556

ISBN: 978-989-758-746-7; ISSN: 2184-5026

545

provides insights into the current state of digital edu-

cation in Austrian primary schools and offers recom-

mendations for improvement. The signiﬁcance of this

research lies in its potential to inform policy and prac-

tice, contributing to the advancement of primary edu-

cation in Austria. By addressing existing challenges

and highlighting effective strategies, this study sup-

ports the broader European vision of fostering high

quality, inclusive, and effective digital education from

the earliest stages of learning.

The paper is organized as follows: After the intro-

duction, the background chapter provides an overview

of the global and European context for digital educa-

tion and computer science in schools. The method-

ology section describes the research design, partic-

ipants, data collection, and analysis methods. The

ﬁndings section presents the key results, followed by a

discussion of their implications in relation to existing

literature and practice. Finally, the paper concludes

with a summary of key insights, limitations, and di-

rections for future research.

2 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

In response to the accelerated global digitalization

driven by the COVID-19 pandemic, the European

Commission launched the “Digital Education Action

Plan (DEAP)” in September 2020. This strategic

initiative is founded upon two pillars: the enhance-

ment digital infrastructure and the provision of essen-

tial equipment, and the advancement of digital educa-

tion content, with a particular emphasis on equipping

learners with emerging technological skills. The over-

arching objective is to align educational systems with

the rapid pace of digital transformation in the modern

world (Kask and Feller, 2021).

In the majority of European school systems, digi-

tal competence education starts at the primary school

level (ISCED level 1), with 21 systems initiating this

instruction as early as grade one. In some countries,

such as the Czech Republic and Bulgaria, this starts at

a later stage, typically around grades three or four. In

a few nations, the introduction of digital education is

postponed until lower secondary school (ISCED level

24), with Croatia and Romania introducing it in grade

ﬁve and Cyprus, Malta, and Albania in grade seven.

Approaches to teaching digital competence vary. It

can be integrated across all subjects, taught as a stan-

dalone course (mandatory or optional), or embedded

within other subject curricula (see Figure 1).

Figure 1: Curriculum approaches to teaching digital com-

petence (EACEA, 2023) (adapted by the authors).

2.1 Digital Education and Computer

Science in Primary Schools

Digital education and computer science are related

but distinct ﬁelds that are very important in educa-

tion today. Digital education, on the one hand, fo-

cuses on the use of digital tools, media and technolo-

gies to support the teaching and learning process. A

core element of digital education is the set of digi-

tal competencies, as outlined in the DigComp frame-

work. These skills are essential for individuals to use

digital technologies effectively and responsibly in ed-

ucational, professional, and personal settings.

The latest DigComp model, DigiComp 2.2, in-

cludes ﬁve main areas: (1) information and data liter-

acy, (2) communication and collaboration, (3) digital

content creation, (4) safety, and (5) problem solving

(European Commission, 2022). By addressing these

dimensions, digital education aims to equip students

with the skills they need to thrive in an increasingly

digital world.

Figure 2: Digital Competence Framework for Citizens (Eu-

ropean Commission, 2022) (adapted by the authors).

As deﬁned in the European Eurydice report, com-

puter science education is the discipline that shapes

the digital landscape and encompasses the fundamen-

tal principles of “computational structures, processes,

CSEDU 2025 - 17th International Conference on Computer Supported Education

546

artifacts and systems, and their software designs, ap-

plications and impact on society.” From a compara-

tive analysis of informatics education in Europe, ten

critical areas have been identiﬁed: (1) data and in-

formation, (2) algorithms, (3) programming, (4) com-

puting systems, (5) networks, (6) people-system in-

terface, (7) design and development, (8) modelling

and simulation, (9) awareness and empowerment, and

(10) safety and security (Eurydice, 2022).

Figure 3: Crucial Computer Science Areas identiﬁed by Eu-

rydice (Eurydice, 2022) (adapted by the authors).

In summary, while computer science emphasizes

the teaching of basic computing concepts (Brinda,

2018) and centers learning on the technology itself

(Flerlage et al., 2023), digital education focuses on

developing the ability to interact effectively with tech-

nology and use it to enhance teaching and learning

(Sadiku et al., 2017).

To prepare students for a technology-driven

world, early exposure to both, computer science and

digital literacy is essential. Research shows that com-

puter science education in K-12 settings not only im-

proves computational thinking abilities, creativity and

critical thinking (Lee et al., 2022), but also addresses

disparities in exposure between genders (Webb et al.,

2017; Prottsman, 2014). Furthermore, early expo-

sure to computer science helps reduce performance

gaps and improves perceptions of the discipline (El-

Hamamsy et al., 2023). Research has also shown

that the integration of computer science education

into other subjects increases students’ enthusiasm, ac-

tive involvement, and curiosity about the content (Lee

et al., 2022).

The beneﬁts of early exposure to computer sci-

ence are mirrored in Austria’s ongoing commitment

to reﬁne its educational policies and integrate digital

literacy across all levels of schooling.

In Austria, computer science education has a long

tradition, beginning with its introduction in 1985 for

students in 9

grade for two hours per week (Re-

iter, 2005). Another signiﬁcant development was

the introduction of the subject “Digital Education”

(German: Digitale Grundbildung) in lower secondary

schools in 2018 (Bundesministerium, 2018). In pri-

mary education, digital literacy is integrated into the

curriculum as an overarching theme. With the in-

troduction of a new curriculum for primary schools

in the 2023/24 academic year, the use of digital me-

dia and devices has been integrated into overarch-

ing didactic principles. Although computer science

and digital education are not separate subjects, they

are treated as an overarching theme throughout the

curriculum. The curriculum includes thirteen such

themes, two of which are computer science educa-

tion (German: Informatische Bildung) and media ed-

ucation (German: Medienbildung). These themes

are to be addressed and implemented in designated

subjects rather than in isolated lessons (Bundesminis-

terium, 2024). Moreover, “Education Innovation Stu-

dios” have been established at university colleges for

teacher education in all federal states and in 100 pri-

mary schools. Here, children acquire a playful un-

derstanding of robotics and coding. Guided by the

motto “Learning to think. Problem-solving”, pro-

grams and projects are designed to help students in

primary schools build their digital literacy (BMBWF,

2023). The recent shift towards an early exposure to

computer science is one of the reasons why profes-

sional development has not yet fully caught up, as ed-

ucators and training programs are still adapting to this

fundamental change in curriculum approach. The fol-

lowing chapter discusses the teacher’s role in more

detail.

2.2 Teachers, Technology &

Transformation

Teachers are central to the successful implementa-

tion of digital education initiatives, and self-efﬁcacy

plays a critical role in determining their effectiveness

(McInerney et al., 2020; Zhou et al., 2020). Self-

efﬁcacy, as described by Bandura’s theory, refers to

an individual’s belief in his or her ability to perform

certain tasks, and for teachers, this translates into con-

ﬁdence in delivering curriculum content (McInerney

et al., 2020; Zhou et al., 2020). Research has con-

sistently shown that teachers with higher self-efﬁcacy

are more likely to adopt innovative teaching practices

and positively inﬂuence student outcomes. In com-

puter science education, where many teachers may

lack prior training, increasing self-efﬁcacy is partic-

ularly important. Professional development (PD) pro-

grams have proven effective in building teacher conﬁ-

dence and equipping educators with tools and knowl-

edge necessary to successfully integrate new curricula

(McInerney et al., 2020; Zhou et al., 2020). However,

The Importance of Digital and Computer Science Education in Primary Schools: Perspectives from Educators

547

educational reforms can sometimes undermine self-

efﬁcacy, particularly when they introduce unfamil-

iar methods or assessment practices that leave teach-

ers feeling unprepared or overwhelmed. This under-

scores the importance of ongoing, well-structured PD

initiatives that not only focus on skill building but also

provide continuous support to teachers as they navi-

gate these changes (Hodges et al., 2014).

While teacher self-efﬁcacy is a critical factor, the

successful integration of digital education also de-

pends on addressing systemic barriers that hinder in-

novation. These barriers can be categorized into in-

trinsic, extrinsic, and institutional challenges, each of

which presents unique obstacles. Intrinsic barriers,

such as fear of change, resistance to new methods,

and a lack of conﬁdence in technological competence,

are often cited as the most signiﬁcant obstacles, par-

ticularly in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineer-

ing, and Mathematics) education (Hasanah and Tsu-

taoka, 2019; Shi, 2016). Extrinsic barriers, including

insufﬁcient access to infrastructure, unreliable tech-

nology, and limited resources, further complicate the

adoption of digital education initiatives (Shi, 2016).

Institutional factors, such as time constraints, com-

peting curricular demands, and inadequate opportuni-

ties for collaboration, create additional challenges for

teachers striving to implement these changes (Lan-

ford et al., 2019). Overcoming these barriers re-

quires a multi-pronged approach. Schools must foster

a culture of collaboration and innovation, and provide

platforms for teachers to share ideas and best prac-

tices. Additionally, empowering teachers with strate-

gies such as design thinking can help them effectively

adapt to and overcome these challenges (Shi, 2016;

Lanford et al., 2019).

Estonia is an example of how a strategic, well-

supported approach to digital education can transform

teaching and learning. Since the mid-1990s, Esto-

nia has prioritized the integration of ICT in education,

focusing on developing robust infrastructure, provid-

ing access to digital tools, and ensuring high-quality

teacher training (P

oldoja, 2020). Estonia’s success is

rooted in strong government support, a highly devel-

oped IT sector, and a culture that values innovation

and digital literacy (Andronic, 2023). This compre-

hensive strategy has made computer science a com-

pulsory subject in primary schools and an elective

in secondary schools, embedding digital skills into

the education system at an early stage (Heintz et al.,

2016). Teacher training has been a cornerstone of this

transformation, with online programs tailored to ed-

ucators’ needs, including both short- and long-term

courses that have signiﬁcantly increased digital lit-

eracy (P

oldoja, 2020; Leoste et al., 2022). By inte-

grating digital culture into everyday learning and ad-

dressing both infrastructural and pedagogical needs,

Estonia has established itself as a leader in digital ed-

ucation. This model offers valuable lessons for other

countries, illustrating how targeted investments in in-

frastructure, training, and teacher support can over-

come barriers and foster educational innovation.

2.3 Creative & Unplugged Approaches

to Digital Education and Computer

Science

The idea of “unplugged” learning revolves around

teaching computational concepts through interactive,

hands-on activities without relying on technology. It

focuses on creating engaging and accessible experi-

ences to simplify complex ideas for a wide range of

learners. Even when devices are available, they can

pose challenges, such as distracting students or re-

quiring complex software installations and conﬁgu-

rations that may disrupt classroom activities, partic-

ularly in environments with limited technological ac-

cess. CS Unplugged leverages this approach, offering

a wide range of educational beneﬁts that make it an

effective and versatile method for teaching computer

science concepts (Bell, 2018).

By eliminating the challenge of learning to pro-

gram—often perceived as a barrier—students can ex-

plore foundational ideas in computer science with-

out prior programming knowledge (Bell et al., 2011).

This enables meaningful engagement with broader

computer science topics (Hromkovi

c and Lacher,

2017) and helps dispel the misconception that the

ﬁeld is solely about programming (Prieto-Rodriguez

and Berretta, 2014). Originally culminating in the

1998 book Computer Science Unplugged: Off-line

Activities and Games for All Ages (Bell et al., 1998),

the CS Unplugged approach has since evolved into

more than just a collection of materials—it has be-

come synonymous with making computer science ac-

cessible. Key principles include avoiding the use of

computers, incorporating kinesthetic learning, foster-

ing a sense of play or challenge, adopting a con-

structivist approach, providing short and simple ex-

planations, and embedding concepts within a narra-

tive framework (Nishida et al., 2009).

Furthermore, its ease of implementation and in-

dependence from specialized equipment make it par-

ticularly effective for large groups, brief learning

sessions, and interdisciplinary integration. For in-

stance, CS Unplugged exercises are highly effective

in short presentations, academic settings, or inter-

active demonstrations at science centers, where pro-

gramming activities may be impractical (Bell, 2018).

CSEDU 2025 - 17th International Conference on Computer Supported Education

548

Additionally, Lau and Yuen (2010) identify CS Un-

plugged as one of three approaches to fostering a

more inclusive and gender-sensitive CS classroom

(Lau and Yuen, 2010).

2.3.1 The COOL Lab & “let IT Dance!”

The COOL Lab, located at Johannes Kepler Univer-

sity (JKU) Linz, is an innovative teaching, learning,

creative, and research facility dedicated to digital edu-

cation and computational thinking. It serves a diverse

audience, including school students, educators, and

university students, and offers a range of programs de-

signed to facilitate the exploration and integration of

modern technologies into educational practices. The

lab offers a variety of workshops designed to meet the

needs of learners at different educational levels. For

instance, school workshops for the 2024/2025 aca-

demic year cover topics like programming robots, the

construction of electronic musical instruments using

the Makey Makey device, and the comprehension of

algorithms through hands-on activities with devices

like the micro:bit. In recognition of the importance of

digital literacy in modern education, the COOL Lab

offers professional development opportunities for ed-

ucators across all disciplines and grade levels. Fur-

thermore, the COOL Lab engages in collaborative ini-

tiatives with educational institutions to enhance digi-

tal competencies and foster a deeper understanding of

technological advancements.

One such initiative is the “Let IT dance!” project,

which addresses issues like cybercrime in music and

dance apps, and aims to promote awareness and ef-

fective prevention strategies. The “Let IT dance!”

project from the Johannes Kepler University was

conducted between November 1, 2022, and Decem-

ber 31, 2023 and was funded under the “Frauenpro-

jektf

orderung 2022/2023”, a program from the Fed-

eral Chancellery aimed at strengthening the role of

women and girls in the digital world and diversify-

ing their career paths, with a focus on STEM ﬁelds.

The project’s objective was to cultivate interest among

girls and young women in IT, computer science, and

related ﬁelds by employing dance and music as a

means of making these subjects more appealing (see

Figure 4). Moreover, the project aimed to facilitate

comprehension of complex concepts such as algo-

rithms, coding, loops, and conditional logic through

creative methods. Another main objective of “Let

IT dance!” was to educate about cyber risks (e.g.,

grooming, sexting, and scamming) associated with

popular platforms like TikTok and YouTube.

The project employed an interdisciplinary and in-

novative implementation strategy designed to effec-

tively engage the target audience. At the project’s

Figure 4: Dancing during the circus show from the “Let IT

dance!” project.

core were interactive workshops, during which partic-

ipants explored programming concepts by animating

robots and virtual characters to “dance”. The work-

shops not only made coding accessible and enjoyable

but also allowed participants to connect abstract com-

puter science concepts with creative outcomes. Si-

multaneously, cybercrime awareness workshops ad-

dressed digital safety concerns by highlighting risks

associated with popular platforms such as TikTok and

YouTube. These workshops were adapted for various

educational levels, from kindergarten to secondary

school, and were incorporated into teacher training

programs. To further enhance learning, the project

developed educational materials, including learning

packages, instructional videos, and a learning analyt-

ics platform. This platform enabled educators to an-

alyze participants’ errors in coding, identify speciﬁc

learning challenges, and create tailored paths to im-

prove understanding. Moreover, all activities under-

went iterative evaluation through the incorporation of

participant feedback and quality assurance cycles.

The “Circus of Knowledge” (German: Zirkus des

Wissens) is an innovative educational and cultural ini-

tiative hosted at the Johannes Kepler University Linz

(see Figure 5). It serves as a creative space where

learning, research, and artistic expression converge.

It played a signiﬁcant role in the ”Let IT dance”

project by serving as an engaging venue for outreach

and educational activities. The Circus is designed

with the objective of making knowledge and educa-

tion appealing to diverse audiences, with a particular

focus on children and young people. Its unconven-

tional approach blends academic content with artistic

and theatrical methods, such as incorporating music,

dance, storytelling, and hands-on activities. This fa-

cilitates the demystiﬁcation of subjects such as sci-

ence, technology, and mathematics, sparking curios-

ity and a love for learning. In the context of the “Let

IT dance!” project, the Circus of Knowledge provided

a venue for workshops and activities where program-

ming, IT concepts, and digital safety were explored

The Importance of Digital and Computer Science Education in Primary Schools: Perspectives from Educators

549

creatively through music and dance. Its unique at-

mosphere complemented the project’s goal of making

computer science approachable and engaging, partic-

ularly for girls and young women.

Figure 5: Circus show from the “Let IT dance!” project.

By linking CS education with creative arts like

dance and music, the project “Let IT dance!” demon-

strated a unique approach to fostering interest in IT

among girls and young women.

3 METHODOLOGY

3.1 Participants

The study included 272 primary school teachers who

attended a circus workshop at the JKU COOL Lab in

2022 and 2023, and accompanied a total of 3,226 chil-

dren. Following their participation in the workshop,

the teachers were invited to take part in the subsequent

survey. The response rate for the survey was 74.3%,

with 202 out of the 272 teachers participating. Of

the respondents, 14 were male, representing 6.9% of

the sample, and 186 were female, representing 92.1%

of the participants. Two respondents did not indicate

their gender. The mean number of years of service

among the participants was 16.03 years, with a stan-

dard deviation of 11.72 years, indicating a wide range

of teaching experience among the respondents.

3.2 Research Design

The objective of this study is to explore the current

state of computer science and digital education in

primary education. Furthermore, it illuminates the

main barriers, teachers’ needs and key issues. To

achieve this, a survey was administered to the partici-

pating teachers. The survey instrument used a mixed-

methods approach, integrating both quantitative and

qualitative components. Quantitative data were col-

lected using dichotomous questions (yes/no) and ﬁve-

point Likert items, with response options ranging

from (1) “does not apply” to (5) “completely applies”,

allowing respondents to express varying degrees of

agreement. In addition to the quantitative items, op-

tional open-ended questions were included to gain

deeper insight into teaching barriers as well as the

main issues that teachers consider as important. Addi-

tionally, demographic information, including gender

and years of service, was collected. The paper-based

survey was completed anonymously, with each par-

ticipant using a unique identiﬁer to ensure conﬁden-

tiality. The questionnaire was originally in German

and was translated into English for the purposes of

this paper. It also included additional items, such as

feedback on the circus workshop. However, this paper

presents only a subset of items from the full question-

naire that are relevant for the research questions.

3.3 Data Analysis

The quantitative data were analyzed with the software

IBM SPSS Statistics, version 23, employing both de-

scriptive and inferential methods. For the items on

the 5-point Likert scale, descriptive statistics were

employed to calculate frequencies, means and stan-

dard deviations. The responses were assigned nu-

merical values on a scale of one to ﬁve. To deter-

mine the proportion of teachers who had already im-

plemented digital education or computer science, de-

scriptive statistics were applied. To evaluate the per-

ceived importance of computer science and digital ed-

ucation, a paired-sample t-test was utilized, whereas

Pearson correlation analysis examined the correlation

between teachers’ conﬁdence and teaching readiness.

A thematic analysis based on the method of Braun

and Clarke (Clarke and Braun, 2017) was conducted

for the qualitative data obtained from the open-ended

questions.

3.4 Research Questions

This study sought to explore the following research

questions which are addressed and discussed in the

following sections.

1. What is the current state of digital education and

computer science in primary schools, and what

factors inﬂuence teachers’ readiness to implement

these subjects?

2. What are the main barriers to implementing digi-

tal education and computer science?

3. What topics do teachers consider most relevant for

digital education?

CSEDU 2025 - 17th International Conference on Computer Supported Education

550

4. What are teachers’ professional development

needs in digital education and computer science?

4 FINDINGS

4.1 Digital Education and Computer

Science in Primary Schools

The participants of the survey were asked whether

computer science and digital education had already

been integrated into their lessons. The results show

a signiﬁcant implementation gap. A total of 179 in-

dividuals responded to the question regarding digi-

tal education, with 74.9% indicating that they have

incorporated it into their lessons. In contrast, com-

puter science has been integrated into the lessons

by only 24.6% of the 183 teachers who responded

to this question. These results show a clear under-

representation of computer science in comparison to

digital education. When it comes to perceived im-

portance, a paired-sampled t-test shows that teachers

rate digital education signiﬁcantly higher (M = 3.85)

than computer science (M = 3.26), t(190) = −10.30,

p < .001. Similarly, teachers feel signiﬁcantly more

conﬁdent in teaching digital education (M = 3.54)

than computer science (M = 2.05), t(193) = −18.13,

p < .001. A Pearson correlation test revealed a mod-

erate positive relationship between teachers’ conﬁ-

dence in computer science and their readiness to im-

plement it in their lessons (r = .400, p < .001). In the

case of digital education, on the other hand, there is a

stronger positive relationship between conﬁdence and

readiness (r = .470, p < .001).

The results show that higher conﬁdence has an in-

ﬂuence on the readiness, however, also other factors

may inﬂuence the willingness to implement it in the

classroom.

4.2 Implementation Barriers

In order to respond to the second research question re-

garding the primary obstacles to the implementation

of digital education and computer science, a thematic

analysis based on the principles of Braun and Clarke

(Clarke and Braun, 2017) was conducted. In total, 74

of 202 teachers mentioned that barriers were prevent-

ing them from integrating computer science or digi-

tal education into their teaching. Following this ap-

proach, these responses were coded (n=74) and cate-

gorized in four main themes that present the key ob-

stacles: a lack of resources (n=40), a lack of teacher

knowledge and conﬁdence (n=17), time constraints

(n=12), and the prioritization of core subjects (n=5).

Figure 6: Barriers to Digital Education Implementation.

1. Lack of Resources. The most signiﬁcant factor

impeding the implementation of computer science

and digital education in the classroom is the lack

of basic infrastructure and resources that educa-

tors believe are necessary to integrate these top-

ics into their lessons. This issue was mentioned

40 times. Examples of responses include: “No

devices, no internet!” (“Keine Ger

ate, kein Inter-

net!”), “The technical requirements at the school

are lacking” (“Es fehlen die technischen Voraus-

setzungen an der Schule”) or “We are unfortu-

nately very sparsely equipped; only one computer

per class” (“Sind leider sehr sp

arlich ausgestattet;

nur ein Computer pro Klasse”). This result shows

that many teachers view technical equipment as

a necessary precondition that prevents them from

making even initial attempts to start digital educa-

tion initiatives.

2. Lack of Teacher Knowledge & Conﬁdence. The

second signiﬁcant implementation barrier is the

issue of professional competency concerns, which

was mentioned seventeen times (23%). The con-

cerns mainly refer to the implementation of com-

puter science, as one teacher noted: “I have no

idea about computer science myself” (“Ich habe

selbst keine Ahnung von Informatik”). Another

participant stated: “Computer science: no, be-

cause too little own knowledge” (“Informatik:

nein, weil zu wenig eigenes Wissen”). These il-

lustrative quotes show a signiﬁcant need for pro-

fessional development, especially when it comes

to computer science.

3. Time Constraints. The third major factor that

prevent teachers from implementing computer

science and digital education in their lessons is

time. This was mentioned by twelve participants

(16.2%). Similar comments, such as “Lack of

The Importance of Digital and Computer Science Education in Primary Schools: Perspectives from Educators

551

time” (“Fehlende Zeit”), “No – because there is

no time” (“Nein – weil es zeitlich kein Platz hat”)

or “No: No time, ’learning material’ has to be

worked on!” (“Nein: Keine Zeit, ’Stoff’ muss er-

arbeitet werden!”) were made. This demonstrates

that there is often little room for additional content

besides basic educational requirements.

4. Prioritization of Core Subjects. A minority of

teachers (n= 5, 6.8%) explicitly stated that core

subjects are being prioritized over computer sci-

ence and digital education. An emphasis was

placed on fundamental skills, as for example one

teacher stated: “Because my class focuses on

other things → learning German . . . ” (“Weil in

meiner Klasse andere Punkte im Vordergrund ste-

hen → Deutsch lernen . . . ”). Another teacher

commented “No: Did not match the subjects”

(“Nein: Hat nicht zu den F

achern gepasst”).

4.3 Key Topics and Challenges

The third research question tried to determine what

topics teachers consider most relevant for digital edu-

cation and how these align with their perceived needs

and implementation challenges. To receive answers

to this question, again, a thematic analysis based on

the method of Braun and Clarke (Clarke and Braun,

2017), was done. In total, 110 teachers listed multiple

key topics that were then coded (n=204) and catego-

rized into eight main themes:

Figure 7: Digital Education: Key Topics.

1. Information Litearcy (n=45, 22.1%). This

theme includes skills, such as online research,

critical evaluation of information, usage of age

appropriate platforms and search-engines and the

ability to distinguish between real and fake news.

Examples are “Critical questioning of content”

(“Kritisches Hinterfragen von Inhalten”), “Access

to knowledge → Being able to search; ﬁnding so-

lutions” (“Zugang zu Wissen → Suchen k

onnen;

osungen ﬁnden”), or “Fake news – ﬁltering out

correct information” (“Fake News – Herausﬁltern

von richtigen Informationen”).

2. Internet Safety (n=42, 20.6%). The second most

important theme is the constant emphasis on the

need to teach content related to “safer internet”,

which was mentioned nine times. Other com-

ments were “Safe, age-appropriate use of the in-

ternet” (“Sichere, altersgem

aße Nutzung des In-

ternets”) or “What is useful – important – what

do I have to consider on the www, what should

I/should I not do” (“Was ist sinvoll – wichtig –

was muss ich im www beachten, was soll ich/soll

ich nicht tun”).

3. Media Usage (n=36, 17.6%). This is the third

area that teachers ﬁnd particularly important. This

theme includes the meaningful use of digital me-

dia. Teachers made comments such as “Rules

for using digital media” (“Regeln im Umgang

mit digitalen Medien”), “Competent use of digital

media” (“Kompetenter Umgang mit digitalen Me-

dien”), or “Media Skills” (“Medienkompetenz”).

4. Computer Skills & Concepts (n=34, 16.7%).

The fourth category includes basic digital com-

petencies such as text processing, basic program-

ming skills, as well as basic hardware operations.

5. Social Media (n=22, 10.8%). Twenty-two re-

sponses focused on the responsible use of social

media platforms, especially popular platforms,

such as TikTok, Snapchat, and WhatsApp.

6. Learning Applications & Robotics (n=13,

6.4%). This theme was only mentioned thirteen

times, with the focus on educational software and

platforms and basic robotics education using Bee-

Bots or learning apps.

7. Privacy & Data Protection (n=12, 5.9%). This

category is like the second major category, inter-

net safety, but with a speciﬁc focus on personal

data management and digital footprints.

8. Other (n=3, 1.5%): A miscellaneous category

captures three comments, including “creativity”

or “use in daily life”.

4.4 Teachers’ Professional Development

Needs

The fourth question dealt with teachers’ professional

development needs and how the implementation gaps

can be met by professional development. In summary,

CSEDU 2025 - 17th International Conference on Computer Supported Education

552

the participants of this study highlighted a strong de-

mand for professional development. In total, 191

teachers answered the questions whether they need

additional support in the implementation of computer

science topics and/or digital education. The mean

score for computer science related professional devel-

opment was higher with a mean score of 3.91 (SD=

0.99), whereas the need for digital education train-

ing resulted in a mean score of 3.54 with a standard

derivation of 1.08.

4.5 Bridging the Gap with Professional

Development

The ﬁndings demonstrate that a number of factors im-

pact the integration of digital education and computer

science into educators’ pedagogical practices. Tar-

geted professional development for teachers can play

a signiﬁcant role in enabling them to overcome these

challenges. Based on the insights gained, four key ar-

eas for impactful professional development have been

identiﬁed:

Figure 8: Effective Professional Development.

1. Combining Digital Education &

Computer Science.

As revealed by the ﬁndings of this study, there

is a signiﬁcant disparity in teachers’ conﬁdence

and implementation rates between digital educa-

tion and computer science. Only 24.6% of teach-

ers reported engaging with computer science top-

ics. The combination of these two areas in train-

ing programs could encourage more teachers to

participate and reduce their fear of computing. In

addition, the inclusion of both topics can also clar-

ify the differences between the ﬁelds and promote

a broader understanding of their complementary

roles. This may motivate more teachers to em-

brace computer science education.

2. Provision of Unplugged Activities.

A considerable obstacle to incorporating com-

puter science and digital education is the lack of

resources, as reported by numerous teachers. For

this reason, professional development should in-

clude practical, low-cost teaching methods, such

as unplugged activities, which do not require tech-

nological devices. Hands-on activities do not need

expertise in using technology and provide an easy

way to teach the fundamental concepts of com-

puter science, such as computational thinking.

The implementation of unplugged activities not

only overcomes the obstacle of resource limita-

tions but also provides an alternative perspective

on the ﬁeld of computer science. This is achieved

by demonstrating the versatility of computer sci-

ence in various classroom settings.

3. Increase Knowledge & Conﬁdence.

The ﬁndings indicate that many teaches may hold

misconceptions about what computer science en-

tails. A common belief is that teaching it re-

quires advanced technological skills. However,

a fundamental part of computer science focuses

on thinking strategies and problem-solving tech-

niques rather than technology itself. This area

is called computational thinking and has already

found its way in many school curricula and gained

considerable attention in the last few years (Wing,

2006). The teaching of computational thinking

equips students with the essential skills such as

abstraction, decomposition, pattern recognition

and algorithmic thinking. These skills are not

only important in the ﬁeld of computer science,

but also in everyday live and across many aca-

demic disciplines. By addressing the misconcep-

tions, teachers can learn about the importance of

computational thinking and recognize that it is a

crucial strategy that promotes critical thinking and

problem-solving. In addition to the beneﬁt that

teaching core concepts does not require any tech-

nology, teachers learn about the beneﬁt of foster-

ing these skills and the positive impact on their

own subjects.

4. Introduction of Teaching & Learning Support.

A common misunderstanding among educators

is the assumption that incorporating digital edu-

cation and computer science into their teaching

always means additional content delivery. The

training program should demonstrate how these

subjects can enhance existing content. This can

be achieved by showing how computational think-

ing and elements of digital education can support

rather than compete with the core subject. Inte-

The Importance of Digital and Computer Science Education in Primary Schools: Perspectives from Educators

553

grating these novel approaches ensures that these

disciplines are regarded as crucial components of

contemporary education, rather than optional ex-

tras.

By addressing the needs of teachers, professional

development can help overcome the main barriers

teachers face and help them effectively integrate com-

puting and digital education into classroom practice.

5 DISCUSSION

This paper investigates the current state of digital edu-

cation and computer science implementation in Aus-

trian primary schools. The results of the survey re-

vealed a signiﬁcant implementation gap between dig-

ital education and computer science, the latter be-

ing underrepresented. Moreover, the ﬁndings demon-

strate that teachers are more conﬁdent in teaching dig-

ital education than computer science, which correlates

with its higher implementation rates. Previous stud-

ies have also highlighted that teacher conﬁdence has

a direct positive impact on the integration of technol-

ogy in their pedagogical practice (Gomez et al., 2022;

Stringer et al., 2022; Mustafına, 2015). Stringer et

al. especially emphasized the critical role of profes-

sional development in enhancing teachers’ conﬁdence

(Stringer et al., 2022).

Even though the results of this survey show that

higher conﬁdence inﬂuences readiness, other factors

also inﬂuence classroom implementation. Main rea-

sons that prevent teachers from implementing the one

or the other are lack of resources, low conﬁdence as

well as a need for professional development, and time

constraints. The identiﬁed barriers are consistent with

previous studies (Nolan et al., 2024; Loudova, 2021;

Stringer et al., 2022). Findings of another study re-

vealed a disconnect between ICT policy goals, teach-

ers’ understanding, and actual classroom technology

integration at the primary school level (Drenoyianni

and Bekos, 2023). Similarly, Jutaite et al. mention the

lack of teacher training as well as technical issues as

one of the key barriers to implementing digital train-

ing (Jutaite et al., 2021).

These ﬁndings highlight the importance of tar-

geted professional development to minimize imple-

mentation barriers and improve teachers’ skills (Bow-

man et al., 2022). Effective teacher training could

address the misconceptions about teaching computer

science and demonstrate new concepts and methods,

such as computational thinking and unplugged activ-

ities. Furthermore, it is vital to emphasize the ben-

eﬁts of including it, as also previous studies have

demonstrated (Li et al., 2019). With this new skill

set, teachers may feel more conﬁdent about integrat-

ing computer science and digital education in their

classrooms.

6 LIMITATIONS

While the results provide valuable insights into the

current state of computer science and digital educa-

tion implementation in primary schools, several limi-

tations must be considered in their interpretation.

First, the study was geographically limited to Aus-

tria and the participants were exclusively teachers

who attended a workshop with their students at the

COOL Lab. This may have implications for the gener-

alizability of the ﬁndings to other contexts or different

regional and international educational settings. Fur-

thermore, the study is characterized by a notable gen-

der imbalance, with male teachers representing only

6.9% of the participants and female participants rep-

resenting 92.1%. It is possible that gender may ex-

ert an inﬂuence on skills and attitudes, and thus a

more balanced sample may yield more balanced re-

sults. Another limitation to consider is that the study

relied on self-reported data, which has the potential

for bias. Responses may be inﬂuenced by over- or

underestimation of teachers’ approaches and skills.

While these ﬁndings offer signiﬁcant insights,

a more comprehensive understanding of this topic

would be gained through further in-depth studies,

such as interviews and observational measurements.

7 CONCLUSION & OUTLOOK

This study provides insights into the implementation

of digital education and computer science in Aus-

trian primary schools. While progress has been made

by integrating both areas as overarching themes in

the new primary school curriculum, which was ﬁrst

implemented in the school year 2023/24, signiﬁcant

challenges remain, particularly in the domain of com-

puter science. In addition to low teaching conﬁdence,

the survey results revealed a number of obstacles to

the integration of digital education and computer sci-

ence. These include limited resources, inadequate

teacher knowledge, time constraints, and the priori-

tization of core subjects. In light of the survey results,

a strategic framework for addressing the challenges

through professional development has been proposed.

Key elements include training that focuses on the

implementation of both digital education and com-

puter science, providing unplugged activities, build-

ing teacher conﬁdence and skills, including address-

CSEDU 2025 - 17th International Conference on Computer Supported Education

554

ing misconceptions, and ﬁnally, demonstrating the in-

terdisciplinary applicability of the disciplines.

In conclusion, this study highlights the critical

need for teacher support in order to meet the revised

curriculum requirements. Although the survey incor-

porates both qualitative and quantitative elements and

offers valuable insights, further studies, such as in-

depth interviews or observations, are essential for a

more comprehensive understanding of the contextual

factors. Additionally, future research should be con-

ducted to assess the effectiveness of the proposed pro-

fessional training and to monitor its impact. By pri-

oritizing these efforts, teachers can be empowered to

equip young learners with the essential skills required

for success in the digital age.

REFERENCES

Andronic, A. (2023). Digital transformation in education: a

comparative analysis of moldova and estonia and rec-

ommendations for sustainable ﬁnancing. Eastern Eu-

ropean Journal of Regional Studies.

Bell, Timand Vahrenhold, J. (2018). CS Unplugged—

How Is It Used, and Does It Work?, pages 497–521.

Springer International Publishing, Cham.

Bell, T., Curzon, P., Cutts, Q., Dagiene, V., and Haber-

man, B. (2011). Overcoming obstacles to cs education

by using non-programming outreach programmes. In

Kala

s, I. and Mittermeir, R. T., editors, Informatics

in Schools. Contributing to 21st Century Education,

pages 71–81, Berlin, Heidelberg. Springer Berlin Hei-

delberg.

Bell, T., Fellows, M., and Witten, I. (1998). Computer Sci-

ence Unplugged: Off-line Activities and Games for All

Ages.

BMBWF (2023). Digitale Grundbildung in der Primarstufe.

Bowman, M. A., Vongkulluksn, V. W., Jiang, Z., and Xie,

K. (2022). Teachers’ exposure to professional devel-

opment and the quality of their instructional technol-

ogy use: The mediating role of teachers’ value and

ability beliefs. Journal of Research on Technology in

Education, 54(2):188–204.

Brinda, T. (2018). Computing education. it - Information

Technology, 60:55 – 57.

Bundesministerium, B. (2018). Verbindliche

Ubung Digi-

tale Grundbildung – Umsetzung am Schulstandort.

Bundesministerium, B. (September 2024). Lehrplan der

Volksschule. BGBl. Nr. 134/1963 zuletzt ge

andert

durch BGBl. II Nr. 204/2024.

Clarke, V. and Braun, V. (2017). Thematic analysis. The

journal of positive psychology, 12(3):297–298.

Drenoyianni, H. and Bekos, N. (2023). Neglected and mis-

aligned: A study of computer science teachers’ per-

ceptions, beliefs and practices toward primary ict. Eu-

ropean Journal of Education Studies, 10(6).

EACEA (2023). Structural indicators for monitoring edu-

cation and training systems in Europe 2023 – Digital

competence at school. Publications Ofﬁce of the Eu-

ropean Union.

El-Hamamsy, L., Bruno, B., Audrin, C., Chevalier, M.,

Avry, S., Zufferey, J. D., and Mondada, F. (2023).

How are primary school computer science curricu-

lar reforms contributing to equity? impact on stu-

dent learning, perception of the discipline, and gen-

der gaps. International Journal of STEM Education,

10(1):60.

European Commission (2022). DigComp 2.2 - The Digi-

tal Competence Framework for Citizens. Publications

Ofﬁce of the European Union, Luxembourg.

Eurydice, E. C. . E. . (2022). Informatics Education at

School in Europe. Publications Ofﬁce of the Euro-

pean Union, Luxembourg. Text completed in Septem-

ber 2022.

Flerlage, C., Bernholt, A., and Parchmann, I. (2023). Mo-

tivation to use digital educational content–differences

between science and other stem students in higher ed-

ucation. Chemistry Teacher International, 5(2):213–

228.

Gomez, F. C., Trespalacios, J., Hsu, Y.-C., and Yang,

D. (2022). Exploring teachers’ technology integra-

tion self-efﬁcacy through the 2017 iste standards.

TechTrends, pages 1–13.

Hasanah, U. and Tsutaoka, T. (2019). An outline of world-

wide barriers in science, technology, engineering and

mathematics (stem) education. Jurnal Pendidikan IPA

Indonesia, 8:193–200.

Heintz, F., Mannila, L., and F

arnqvist, T. (2016). A re-

view of models for introducing computational think-

ing, computer science and computing in k-12 educa-

tion. 2016 IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference

(FIE), pages 1–9.

Hodges, C., Meng, A., Ryan, M., Usselman, M., Kostka,

B., Gale, J., and Newsome, A. (2014). Teacher self-

efﬁcacy and the implementation of a problem-based

science curriculum. In Society for Information Tech-

nology & Teacher Education International Confer-

ence, pages 2322–2325. Association for the Advance-

ment of Computing in Education (AACE).

Hromkovi

c, J. and Lacher, R. (2017). The computer sci-

ence way of thinking in human history and conse-

quences for the design of computer science curricula.

In Dagien

e, V. and Hellas, A., editors, Informatics in

Schools: Focus on Learning Programming, pages 3–

11, Cham. Springer International Publishing.

Jutaite, R., Janiunaite, B., and Horbacauskiene, J. (2021).

The challenging aspects of digital learning objects us-

age in a primary school during the pandemics. Journal

of educational and social research., 11(5):201–215.

Kask, M. and Feller, N. (2021). Digital education in europe

and the eu’s role in upgrading it.

Lanford, M., Corwin, Z. B., Maruco, T. J., and Ochsner, A.

(2019). Institutional barriers to innovation: Lessons

from a digital intervention for underrepresented stu-

dents applying to college. Journal of Research on

Technology in Education, 51:203 – 216.

Lau, W. W. F. and Yuen, A. H. K. (2010). Gender differ-

ences in learning styles: Nurturing a gender and style

The Importance of Digital and Computer Science Education in Primary Schools: Perspectives from Educators

555

sensitive computer science classroom. Australasian

Journal of Educational Technology, 26(7).

Lee, S. J., Francom, G. M., and Nuatomue, J. (2022). Com-

puter science education and k-12 students’ computa-

tional thinking: A systematic review. International

Journal of Educational Research, 114:102008.

Leoste, J., Lavicza, Z., Fenyvesi, K., Tuul, M., and

Oun,

T. (2022). Enhancing digital skills of early childhood

teachers through online science, technology, engineer-

ing, art, math training programs in estonia. In Fron-

tiers in Education.

Li, S., Yamaguchi, S., Sukhbaatar, J., and Takada, J.-i.

(2019). The inﬂuence of teachers’ professional de-

velopment activities on the factors promoting ict in-

tegration in primary schools in mongolia. Education

Sciences, 9(2):78.

Loudova, I. (2021). Competence of an ict teacher con-

cerning didactic and methodological support in teach-

ing ict at primary school. In Learning Technologies

and Systems: 19th International Conference on Web-

Based Learning, ICWL 2020, and 5th International

Symposium on Emerging Technologies for Education,

SETE 2020, Ningbo, China, October 22–24, 2020,

Proceedings 5, pages 70–81. Springer.

McInerney, C., Exton, C., and Hinchey, M. (2020). A study

of high school computer science teacher conﬁdence

levels. In Proceedings of the 15th Workshop on Pri-

mary and Secondary Computing Education, WiPSCE

’20, New York, NY, USA. Association for Computing

Machinery.

Mustafına, A. (2015). The role of teachers’ attitudes toward

technology integration in school. The Eurasia Pro-

ceedings of Educational and Social Sciences, 3:129–

138.

Nishida, T., Kanemune, S., Idosaka, Y., Namiki, M., Bell,

T., and Kuno, Y. (2009). A cs unplugged design pat-

tern. In Proceedings of the 40th ACM Technical Sym-

posium on Computer Science Education, SIGCSE ’09,

page 231–235, New York, NY, USA. Association for

Computing Machinery.

Nolan, K., O’Farrell, A., Quille, K., Nolan, K., Faherty, R.,

Jaiswal, R., Hensman, S., Collins, M., Harte, M., and

Becker, B. A. (2024). Enabling digital technology in

primary schools. Proceedings of the 2024 on Innova-

tion and Technology in Computer Science Education

V. 2, pages 823–823.

oldoja, H. (2020). Report on ict in education in the repub-

lic of estonia. Comparative Analysis of ICT in Edu-

cation Between China and Central and Eastern Euro-

pean Countries, pages 133–145.

Prieto-Rodriguez, E. and Berretta, R. (2014). Digital tech-

nology teachers’ perceptions of computer science: It

is not all about programming. In Frontiers in Educa-

tion Conference, volume 2015.

Prottsman, K. (2014). Computer science for the elementary

classroom. ACM Inroads, 5(4):60–63.

Reiter, A. (2005). Incorporation of informatics in Austrian

education: The project “computer-education-society”

in the school year 1984/85. In International Confer-

ence on Informatics in Secondary Schools-Evolution

and Perspectives, pages 4–19. Springer.

Sadiku, M. N. O., Shadare, A. E., and Musa, S. M. (2017).

Digital education. Journal of Educational Research

and Policies.

Shi, N. K. (2016). Investigating the barriers affecting in-

tegration of ict for teaching and learning in schools.

International Journal of Social Media and Interactive

Learning Environments, 4:350–363.

Stringer, L. R., Lee, K. M., Sturm, S., and Giacaman,

N. (2022). A systematic review of primary school

teachers’ experiences with digital technologies cur-

ricula. Education and Information Technologies,

27(9):12585–12607.

Webb, M., Davis, N., Bell, T., Katz, Y. J., Reynolds, N.,

Chambers, D. P., and Sysło, M. M. (2017). Computer

science in k-12 school curricula of the 2lst century:

Why, what and when? Education and Information

Technologies, 22:445–468.

Wing, J. M. (2006). Computational thinking. Com-

munications of the ACM, 49(3):33–35. doi:

10.1145/1118178.1118215.

Zhou, N., Nguyen, H., Fischer, C., Richardson, D. J., and

Warschauer, M. (2020). High school teachers’ self-

efﬁcacy in teaching computer science. ACM Transac-

tions on Computing Education (TOCE), 20:1 – 18.

CSEDU 2025 - 17th International Conference on Computer Supported Education

556