The number of lessons in computer science in the countries of the region is higher than in Montenegro, where almost every other student would like to have more lessons in this subject, according to research by the Montenegrin Academy of Sciences and Arts (CANU).
At the CANU round table, which was dedicated to the position and study of informatics in the educational system of Montenegro, the results of research on the teaching of informatics in high schools were presented.
In Montenegrin high schools, in addition to the subject of Informatics in the 1st grade, optional courses are offered in business informatics, computer and web presentations for 2nd and 3rd grade students, and Algorithms and programming for 3rd and 4th grade students, which is offered in a package with another optional subject.
"Almost every second student in Montenegro would like to have more computer science classes, with which both parents and teachers and school administrators agree (83 percent of those surveyed), because they believe that computer science is important for continuing education (65 percent of surveyed parents)". CANU research showed.
It was announced that in Serbia, Croatia and Macedonia, the number of computer science classes is significantly higher than in Montenegro.
As they stated, the school's computer infrastructure is outdated because it has not been purchased since 2007, and some computers are not working.
The informatics questionnaire was completed by 941 students of the first grade of high school, of whom 38,9 percent had a grade of five in informatics in the semester.
"15,6 percent of them declared that they are most often bored in computer science classes, while every fifth student answered that they feel relaxed," the research showed.
CANU assessed that boredom is probably a consequence of the fact that they receive few tasks related to situations from everyday life (more than 65 percent say never or rarely).
The students said that the teachers very rarely connect the content to everyday experiences, even though this is one of the more important general goals of the course.
Half of the students stated that, as the results of the research showed, there is no group work in the classes and that everyone gets the same tasks, regardless of abilities.
Additional literature and professional magazines are not used, as stated by the majority of students in the questionnaire.
When it comes to textbooks, most students think that computer science lessons are uninteresting, too extensive, boring, and that they never look through a textbook unless something is assigned to them, because it does not help them when solving everyday problems.
The teachers assessed that the textbooks should be aligned with the objectives of the program to a greater extent, encourage critical thinking and independent learning in order to achieve a better relationship between theoretical and practical knowledge.
"The majority of teachers have a negative attitude on this issue, that is, they believe that the number of classes is not adequate for the intended scope of the program, as well as the conditions for its implementation," the research showed.
CANU recommended that in order to improve the situation, it is necessary to urgently start the restoration of the school's computer infrastructure (four to five thousand computers), with additional training of teachers (54,7 percent of respondents from school administrations believe that the professional qualification of IT teachers is weak or very weak) and by innovating curricula with an increase in the number of classes, which is supported by students, teachers and parents.
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