Building Digital Literacy Through Hackathon Challenges

The second DigiEduHack 2025 webinar focused on how digital literacy frameworks and hackathon-based learning can co-create practical strategies for building essential digital skills across Europe. We explored the application of DigComp and DigCompEdu, examined how hackathons empower both students and educators, and identified challenges and recommendations for advancing responsible digital citizenship.  

From Policy to Practice – DigComp and DigCompEdu in Action  

Opening the discussion, the webinar introduced two key European frameworks: DigCompEdu, which helps educators develop and assess their digital teaching skills, and DigiEduComp, which supports schools and education systems in integrating digital technologies for effective teaching and learning. 

As Riina Vuorikari (ALL DIGITAL, Finland) emphasized both frameworks serve as practical guides for students and educators toward targeted digital skill development. Corrado Cerruti (DigiEduHack National Ambassador, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Italy), shared how universities use DigCompEdu for curriculum design, especially through teaching initiatives like mental maps for persons with intellectual disabilities, to improve their learning process, or the use of gaming and virtual reality activities to engage high school students. 

However, to bring these frameworks to life, we need institutional commitment, professional development, and hands-on opportunities — like hackathons. 

Hackathons as powerful tools for Critical Thinking and Digital Empowerment  

The discussion then shifted to how hackathons serve as transformative learning spaces. Natalia Kucirkova (International Centre for EdTech Impact, Norway), illustrated how hackathons empower learners to co-create meaningful solutions that create knowledge while practicing critical thinking, collaboration, and online responsibility. 

Jonas Bäckelin (DigiEduHack National Ambassador, City of Stockholm Professional Developement Platform, Sweden) presented how Sweden uses hackathons in teacher training and school-wide projects to empower both educators and learners. The panel addressed the positive use of hackathons to develop skills via solutions to solve real world problems.  

What Still Needs to Be Done?

As a hackathon organisation committed to fostering digital competence, we see the challenges raised during the closing roundtable not just as obstacles, but as valuable insights that can help us improve and better support educators and learners. By addressing these gaps, we can strengthen the role of hackathons in education and create more inclusive, impactful learning experiences. Key takeaways included:

• The need to shift from basic digital access to meaningful engagement with technology.

• Limited teacher training and support in developing digital skills.

• Inconsistent implementation of the DigComp and DigCompEdu frameworks across regions and institutions.

• The lack of recognition for informal learning methods such as hackathons.

• A need for real use cases that integrate digital tools into both formal and informal learning environments.

• The use of micro-credentials was proposed to recognise hackathon participation in formal educational settings.

• Weak links between academia and institutions in embedding digital competence across disciplines.

• The importance of inclusive, collaborative strategies based on the Quadruple Helix model—bringing together education, industry, government, and civil society.

These reflections are not just closing thoughts—they are a roadmap for action. By integrating these insights, we can continue shaping hackathons into powerful engines for digital empowerment, critical thinking, and educational innovation.

Watch the full webinar on DigiEduHack’s YouTube Channel for more practical insights, honest reflections, and plenty of inspiration for teachers, students, and anyone planning to take part in this year’s DigiEduHack events.

Register for upcoming webinars

Four more webinars are planned between now and November, each covering different aspects of the future of digital education.

Next webinar: Next-Gen Online Assessment Methods: Insights from DigiEduHack, Thursday, 12th June at 2:00 p.m. CET, online via Zoom. Register here.  

Whether you are a teacher, student, parent, or policymaker, this series is for you. Together, we can shape the future of learning—with care, creativity, and human values at the heart of it.