Piekary Slaskie Municipal Public Library in Poland used ‘gamification’ – an educational technique that incorporates the methods of games, like role-playing, stories, teamwork and competition – to stimulate curiosity about digital technology, and to build young people’s confidence and skills in using technology.

The project, funded by the EIFL Public Library Innovation Programme (EIFL-PLIP), created and equipped a space in the library – the ‘ITLab’ – where children and youth have free access to digital technology. Librarians and volunteer facilitators hosted workshops on effective use of smart phones; how to build robots and programme them to move; 3D modelling and printing, and designing and coding computer games. The workshops attracted over 400 children and youth.

To raise awareness across the city, the library also organized a ‘Day of Information Technology’, which included a conference on Web safety; a computer game tournament and an outdoor treasure hunt using digital technology. Hundreds of citizens took part, and the day is to become a regular feature on the library’s calendar