Scope@scuola: (In)-formative paths on topics related with high performance, parallel and distributed computing

Abstract

The SCoPE@Scuola initiative was born with the aim to inspire curiosity in high school students about High Performance Computing (HPC) and Parallel and Distributed Computing (PDC). The HPC/PDC world could be an interesting matter for students because is a necessary tool to solve challenging problems in science and technology and it provides context where a plenty of knowledge acquired at school can find a real application. In fact, the themes related to HPC/PDC involve a large range of knowledge and skills: from mathematical modelling of problems to algorithm design, from software implementation to design and management of complex computer systems. The initiative, begun at the end of 2014, involved several schools in the Naples (Italy) district, and has also been used for work-based learning activities and projects aimed to avoid students “dropouts”. The results collected during all the last years make us hopeful that such initiative could be useful both to increment students awareness about the utility in the real world of all the knowledge acquired at school and to help them in their future educational and/or working choices.