Code Slam! Lippe – Practical AI and Programming Skills for High School Students in the Lippe District

Artificial intelligence, data science, and algorithmic thinking are key skills for the future—including in school and the workplace. At the same time, many computer science programs in upper secondary school are still heavily theory-based. With Code Slam! Lippe, Fraunhofer IOSB-INA, Lippe Bildung eG, and the Institute for Science Dialogue (IWD) at TH OWL bring real-world AI use cases from the daily industrial operations of our partner companies directly to upper secondary students at participating schools in the Lippe district.

In the 2026–27 school year, Code Slam! Lippe will support a fixed group of about 25 upper secondary students at participating schools in the Lippe district who wish to deepen their computer science knowledge, gain hands-on experience with AI, and explore academic and career paths in STEM fields. The group will participate in a progressive program consisting of four tandems—each comprising a preparatory programming workshop and a “Code Slam” to tackle a real-world AI use case from our industry partners—as well as a concluding workshop. This approach fosters direct practical relevance, provides concrete insights into digital career paths, and establishes initial contacts with potential employers in East Westphalia-Lippe.

• Preparatory Programming Workshops At the SmartFactoryOWL in Lemgo, participants acquire fundamentals in programming logic, algorithms, data analysis, and AI for the Code Slams. The workshops combine theory and practice, tie in with the school curriculum, and specifically prepare students for the tasks set by the industry partners. They are designed and delivered by AI experts from Fraunhofer IOSB-INA.
• One-day Code Slams with Industry Partners In the Code Slams, students work in small groups on real AI problems from everyday industrial practice – for example on energy consumption simulation, anomaly detection in sensor data, image-based quality control, or AI agents using company knowledge. The challenges take place at our partner companies or at the SmartFactoryOWL and are supported by subject-matter experts from industry and Fraunhofer IOSB-INA.
• Final Workshop In the final workshop, participants reflect on their learning experiences from the workshops and Code Slams, discuss the opportunities, limitations, and risks of AI, and gain insights into career paths in programming, computer science, and data science.
• Media Support and Digital Learning Formats The Institute for Science Dialogue at TH OWL provides media support for the project, documents the Code Slams, and prepares the content in a video series and other digital formats.
• School Network and Transfer Through Lippe Bildung eG, schools in the Lippe district are approached, student participation is coordinated, and schools are involved in the content planning as a supplement to the curriculum. In addition, Lippe Bildung eG integrates the formats into the regional portfolio of STEM and career orientation offerings, thus creating the basis for continuing Code Slam! Lippe beyond the project period.

On 2 February 2026, the project consortium met in Lemgo for the kick-off, agreed on initial Code Slam formats, and, together with the industry partners, prepared the specific tasks for the students.

Project participants

Funded project partners

• Fraunhofer IOSB-INA, Lemgo
• Lippe Bildung eG / zdi-Zentrum Lippe.MINT
• Institute for Science Dialogue, TH OWL

Associated industry partners

• Phoenix Contact GmbH & Co. KG
• Schüco International KG
• Sollich KG
• Kunststoffe in OWL e.V.

Funded under the “Pakt für Informatik 2.0” from the ERDF/JTF Programme NRW 2021–2027.

Project duration: 1 January 2026 – 31 December 2027.