Primary school pupils in 11 additional schools will learn programming, computer science and code writing using the Finnish book series “Hello Ruby.” Respective schools received the books Adventures in Coding and Journey inside the Computer from the Communications Commission free of charge. Their purpose is to develop media literacy, critical thinking, and analytical skills among the youngsters.

The Communications Commission organised trainings in using the “Hello Ruby” teaching method for the teachers of public schools in Tbilisi, Kobuleti, Telavi, Akhmeta, Gori, Akhaltsikhe, Chvinti, Martvili and Vani. The training course was led by a teacher from School N71 in Tbilisi, who is certified in the “Hello Ruby” teaching method and has been using it to teach programming and computer science for more than a year. 

“Hello Ruby” is a successful series of books that has already been adopted by 25 countries. It aims to develop critical thinking and analytical skills among primary school pupils. The books have been translated into 25 languages, including English, German, French, Italian, Estonian and Japanese. The Communications Commission obtained exclusive rights from the book author to translate and publish “Hello Ruby” in Georgian. Together with the Ministry of Education and Science, the Commission has been introducing the Finnish books in public and private schools across Georgia since 2019. Children in public schools are learning “Hello Ruby” in book club format, while in private schools it is already part of the official curriculum. 

In 2019, the Communications Commission invited “Hello Ruby” author Linda Liukas to visit Georgia and personally introduce her method to 60 teachers and trainers. Since then, the Commission has trained additional 150 teachers. As of now, more than 800 pupils have learned the basics of computer science through the “Hello Ruby” books. 

It is also important to note that in 2020 the Commission conducted a survey of the directors and teachers in schools that have adopted the “Hello Ruby” method. The survey demonstrated that both the learning results and satisfaction levels among the pupils are high. Due to the increased interest and demand for the Finnish book series, the Commission will continue to provide the appropriate training for teachers in the future.