Cybercamp at the University of Limerick 

Cybercamp is an initiative from the University of Limerick aiming to give secondary school students an overview of different ICT skills. This summer, from June 21st to July 16th, they are running three camps, each of which will offer three different streams. These are Web Development, Java, and Processing. 

An overview of the streams of this year's Cybercamp: 

Stream 1: Introduction to Web Design  

This short course will introduce you to the basics of web design and how to build simple webpages and websites. The course covers HTML and CSS, the building blocks of web design. Over a series of short videos and online learning material you will learn how to create a simple HTML web page and in the following live online session you will learn to format this and other pages to make them more visually appealing. A fun and easy introduction to a vital ICT skill, suitable for beginners or those who wish to brush up on their web design skills.  

Stream 2: Introduction to Java Programming with Greenfoot  

Ever wonder how you might build a computer game? In this introductory course, you will learn to develop and build a simple game in the Java programming language using a free tool called Greenfoot. The course follows the basics of programming from variables, conditional statements, loops, and functions and step-by-step helps you to build a simple one-person game. A mix of short videos and other learning material, supported by a live online session, take the first steps to building your own fun and interesting games. Suitable for beginners.  

Steam 3: Introduction to Processing  

Are you interested in the visual and auditory arts? Processing is an easy-to-use development environment built for the purpose of teaching computer programming in a visual context. The course guides you through the basics of interaction design and programming as you build an interactive display. Suitable for beginners, this series of short videos and other learning material, supported by a live online session, will give you an interesting and fun introduction to the world of visual design and electronic arts.  

The streams have been created with students aged 13 to 17 in mind and are suitable for both beginners and those who are looking to refresh their skills. The camps run online with video and other learning materials providing the fundamentals, forums for questions and answers and live sessions (through an online meeting tool) to cement their learning. Students can choose to access one or more of the above streams and each camp will run over two weeks allowing plenty of time to access and learn the information. 

On the final day of each of these camps there will be a 'showcase' day, in which students would be given time to present any work or project they have created during their Cybercamp. We will also have presentations to make students aware of the courses available in the University of Limerick for future third level study in the ICT area.  These presentations will be given by representatives from the Computer Science department, and the Electronic and Computer Engineering department. 

Accessing the camp is free of charge with the only costs for the students being their time in accessing and learning the content. Students will need access to internet and a laptop or desktop in order to access and consume the content. 

The Cybercamp has always been in high demand and places are limited, so we are delighted that you and your students are amongst the first to hear about this exciting opportunity.  

We would appreciate if you could reach out to any students that you feel may be interested and let them know about this opportunity. If you could then get back to us to tell us how many students would like to take part, we will do our utmost to allocate spaces for them on their chosen camp.  For more information, please feel free to contact me or go to our website: http://pslc.ul.ie/ulcco/  

Thank you for your time and consideration, 

Kim O'Shea