As autumn approaches, on 25 September, the eighth annual Baltic-wide competition for students from 1st to 12th grade “Ventspils IT Challenge 2023” will kick off. Although the main focus remains on the creative use of technology, this year the context is unprecedented and challenging – students are invited to think green! Entries must be submitted by 6 November, and the strongest teams will compete in the Final in Ventspils from 6-8 December.
Four strong partners have joined the Friends of the Competition with the relevance of this year’s theme. They are no strangers to green sustainability themes, and they show it in their actions by implementing various green initiatives and projects. “Latvijas valsts meži”, “Tet”, “Depozīta Iepakojuma Operators” and Elektrum Energy Efficiency Centre not only support the idea of the Competition, but have also been involved in the preparation of the first round tasks, facilitating the transfer of experience and knowledge.
A brief summary of the competition:
- The competition is open to students from 1st to 12th grades and students of vocational schools.
- Participants take part in the competition in 4 age groups, completing one of the tasks:
- Group A (grades 1-3), students from Latvia: task in cooperation with “Depozīta Iepakojuma Operators”.
- Group B (grades 4-6): task in cooperation with “Latvijas valsts meži”.
- Group C (grades 7-9): task in cooperation with Elektrum Energy Efficiency Centre.
- Group D (grades 10-12): task in cooperation with “Tet”.
A brief summary of the stages:
- Round 1 of the Competition takes place until 6 November, during which the following must be done:
- form a team of 4 members, consisting of 3 students and 1 adult. The adult can be a school teacher, a parent, a godparent, a principal or any other adult willing to support the participation of pupils and young people in the Competition;
- complete the Round 1 task for their age group (A, B, C or D), which can be found on the competition website www.ventspilsitc.com, register their team and submit their completed task. This year, the registration and submission of the Round 1 task has been simplified: – : the team can be registered on the website at the time of submission of the completed task. No need to register separately beforehand!
- And then just wait for the results and, if successful, an invitation to the Final in Ventspils.
- The Final in Ventspils will take place:
- Group A from 7 to 8 December, and
- Groups B, C and D from 6 to 8 December.
- The organisers will provide:
- accommodation during the Competition in Ventspils;
- delicious meals – breakfast, lunch, dinner;
- Visits to VIZIUM, excursions and entertainment.
- transport reimbursement of EUR 0.17 per kilometre to and from the Competition.
- Competition rules available at: https://ventspilsitc.com/about-us/.
Although participation in the Final is already worth a prize, a substantial prize fund of EUR 13,000 will be divided among the finalists in Ventspils, provided by the State City of Ventspils. The biggest prize for a team is EUR 1,600. The finalists will also receive prizes from the organisers and sponsors of the Competition.
This year, there will also be an opportunity for interested parties to take part in online information events. This is a great opportunity to meet the organisers – the developers of the Competition tasks – face-to-face and get all the questions, explanations and answers about the challenges. A link to join will be posted on the website and social media accounts, but dates and times can already be marked in the calendars:
- For Group A on 16 October at 18.00;
- For Group B on 17 October at 18.00;
- For Group C on 18 October at 18.00;
- For Group D on 19 October at 18.00. 18.00.
For more information about the competition, please visit the competition website: www.ventspilsitc.com, and follow us on Instagram @ventspilsitchallenge and Facebook @ventspilsitc. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact: [email protected].
The “Ventspils IT Challenge” technology competition is supported by Ventspils State City Municipality. The Competition is organised by the Ventspils Digital Centre in cooperation with trusted partners and informational supporters: Science Centre VIZIUM, Ventspils University College, Ventspils State City Council Education Department, Association “Langas į ateitį” (Lithuania), educational organisation “MTÜ Nuti-Võlur” (Estonia), AS “Latvijas Valsts meži”, SIA “Tet”, Elektrum Energy Efficiency Centre, SIA “Depozīta Iepakojuma Operators”, SIA “Ubiquiti Latvia”, Latvian Information and Communications Technology Association (LIKTA), Ministry of Education and Science, State Education Development Agency, eTwinning network and the Faculty of Pedagogy, Psychology and Arts of the University of Latvia.
