ICTEM 2002 follows a tradition of working conferences held every one or two years under the auspices of IFIP WG3.2, addressing various issues related to teaching informatics and using information and computing technology at the university level. The theme for ICTEM 2002 is informatics curricula, teaching methods, and best practice.

Invited papers will be presented during the conference sessions. Conference attendees also will participate in working groups, and most working group members will present a paper to the working group. Each working group will prepare a paper on some aspect of informatics education. The invited papers and working group papers will be published in the conference proceedings, and it is anticipated that selected papers will be published in a proceedings volume by Kluwer. The intention is to provide perspectives and examples of innovative projects in informatics education throughout the world.

The conference will be organized around several themes. The invited papers will relate to these themes, and there will be a working group for each theme. Interested participants should indicate the theme/working group that is of interest to them and also indicate how their proposed paper or position statement will contribute to the discussion of the theme by the working group. The themes currently scheduled for the conference program are:

• Directions and Challenges in Informatics Education
  This working group will focus on examples of recent efforts to address current challenges in teaching informatics, and also on identifying directions and trends in informatics education.

• Teaching Programming and Problem Solving
  The emphasis of this working group is on the identification of philosophical positions regarding how to effectively teach programming and problem solving, including larger issues relative to the acquisition by students of meta-level problem solving skills. Current good practices and successes also will be considered.

• A Common Basis (or Core) for all Programs in Computing
  The main question to be addressed by this working group is "Is there a set of topics, concepts, skills, and practices that should be included in any program in computing?". The intention is to consider various programs in informatics, computer science, information systems, computer/software engineering, etc. that intend to prepare graduates for entry into a computing profession.

• Developing Curriculum Models that are Widely Effective
  Curriculum models such as ICF 2000, CC 2001, and IS'98 have been proposed as a basis for developing and updating informatics programs. This working group will investigate the extent to which these models can be effective in a variety of contexts throughout the world, what changes might be appropriate to make them more effective to a broader audience, and whether there are guidelines for the future development of curriculum models that are intended to be effective in a wide range of contexts.

Because it is a working conference, attendance at ICTEM 2002 is by invitation in order to provide the distribution of expertise and demographics that is appropriate. Those who are interested in participating should contact a member of the Program Committee.

Florianopolis and Santa Catarina offer a delightful location for the conference. It is expected that the cost for conference participants will be about US $325, plus room and all meals at about US$96 per day.

Joe Turner

ICTEM 2002 Program Chair