Children should be equipped for the digital future

Danish children are among the most digital in the world. But technological development – not least within artificial intelligence – is moving so fast that many children, parents and teachers struggle to keep up. 

That is why Villum Foundation, together with Novo Nordisk Foundation, is supporting the four-year learning project Ultra:bit. With an experimental and playful approach, the project aims to strengthen children’s technological understanding and digital literacy, so that they can better see through the mechanisms that permeate our high-tech society.

Technological understanding and digital literacy

Through teaching, information initiatives and close cooperation with parents, the ambition is to strengthen the technological understanding and digital literacy of children in years 1-6. The goal is to help them navigate critically, responsibly and creatively in a digital world. 

Children should not only learn to use digital tools – they should also understand technology’s role in society, democracy and everyday life. Regardless of gender, social background or prior digital interest, children will learn to make use of technology’s opportunities while also developing the ability to think critically about both the content and the structures behind the technology.

The Ultra:bit project is run by DR in collaboration with the Centre for Teaching Materials, the Centre for Computational Thinking and Design at Aarhus University, and the LIFE Foundation. 

Henrik Bo Nielsen, Director of Culture at DR, says: “The pace of development is so fast that very few people really understand what lies behind algorithms, datasets and artificial intelligence. Teachers want to teach it, but lack the tools. Parents want to talk about it, but are often more on the back foot than their children. That’s why we are deeply grateful for the support from Novo Nordisk Foundation and Villum Foundation, which makes it possible to launch yet another Ultra:bit project.”

Equal access to digital literacy

From Villum Foundation, which supports the learning project with DKK 25 million, Head of Grants Ole Laursen explains: “It is crucial that all children, regardless of background, have the opportunity to understand and navigate the digital reality. If we create A- and B-teams in technology, we risk undermining both democracy and our ideals of equality. Ultra:bit is a strong initiative that ensures children, schools and parents gain equal access to digital literacy – and we are therefore pleased to support such an important project.”

Children, schools and parents across the country

The new Ultra:bit project builds on the experience of the first Ultra:bit, which since 2018 has inspired schools to teach technology in years 4–8 and helped correct a gender imbalance in interest in technology. As part of that initiative, around 100,000 children across the country got to work with microcomputers.

In the new project, 3,600 Ultra:bit resource kits will be distributed to 800 schools. If each kit is used just once, 70,000 pupils will benefit from the project – and the ambition is for many more pupils to benefit. Additional efforts will be directed at parents, both at parents’ evenings and at home, as well as efforts directed at children through DR’s children’s channels, DR Ramasjang and DR Ultra. 

Finally, 196 professional development courses will be offered, with a total of 3,000 participating teachers, along with free learning materials and learning events nationwide.