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Strategies for supporting European schools to evolve into open and committed
learning communities
Initial suggestions from the Open Discovery Space project large-scale implementation
Eleni-Maria Chelioti
Research & Development Department
Ellinogermaniki Agogi
Athens, Greece
e-mail: [email protected]
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The 14th IEEE International Conference on Advanced Learning Technologies -
ICALT2014, Athens, July 9th, 2014
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Project Identities: Open Discovery Space
- A European initiative, co-funded by the ICT
Policy Support Program
- 25 European countries during 2012-2015
- Modernizing school education by implementing a “pull” rather than a “push” approach.
- Engaging teachers, students, parents and policymakers in a first of its kind effort to create a pan-European multilingual eLearning and community-oriented social platform http://portal.opendiscoveryspace.eu/ -> discovering, discussing, sharing, shaping and acquiring educational resources
3
The challenge
- To promote more flexible and creative ways of learning by improving the way educational content is produced, accessed and used,
- To foster sharing and collaboration
HOW? By making the teacher the core node and change leader of a developing community.
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Objectives
In line with the Position Paper of the EU Initiative
'Opening Up Education’ (European Commission, 2013)
• Just providing educational resources has
not worked
• OPAL 2010-2012:
“There are masses of free high quality
educational resources available but the
critical extent of usage is not yet met!”
5
In Practice
Cooperation with National Initiatives and Policies & Combination
of two approaches
Ministries/ Agencies
as partners in
Greece, Croatia,
Bulgaria, Austria,
Cyprus
ODS proposes: A holistic approach for introducing innovation to
schools
What ODS Proposes:
Innovation Model- “Listening to schools’ needs”
Pilot 1: Original goal: 100e-
mature schools-
Accomplished: 240 schools
Pilot 2: Original goal
600 schools-
Accomplished: 1757
Large scale validation: 2000 schools
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A vibrant European Network of 2000
schools (by year 3 of the project)
Currently: 1807 schools, 3501 teachers, 70.869
students
Self-assessment tool for the school
(Step 1 to join ODS)
Language URL
English http://e-mature.ea.gr/
Greek http://greece.e-mature.ea.gr/
Dutch http://dutch.e-mature.ea.gr/
Finnish http://finland.e-mature.ea.gr/
French http://france.e-mature.ea.gr/
German http://german.e-mature.ea.gr/
Italian http://italy.e-mature.ea.gr/
Portuguese http://portugal.e-mature.ea.gr/
Estonian http://estonia.e-mature.ea.gr/
Lithuanian http://lithuania.e-mature.ea.gr/
Gaelic http://ireland.e-mature.ea.gr/
Spanish http://spain.e-mature.ea.gr/
Croatian http://croatia.e-mature.ea.gr/
Bulgarian http://bulgaria.e-mature.ea.gr/
Greenlandic
http://greenlandic.e-
mature.ea.gr/
Romanian http://romania.e-mature.ea.gr/
Serbian http://serbia.e-mature.ea.gr/
Based on the tool
introduced by Digital
Schools, Ireland
Available in 17
languages
E-maturity results
Update: 19/06/2014
Update: 10/06/2013
Listening to schools’ needs- 92
Visionary workshops across Europe
& ongoing Practice reflection
workshops
What can
teachers do
through Open
Discovery
Space?
Create the digital
community of your
school
Become a member of a
vibrant European
Network of 2000 schools
Create and participate
in international
thematic communities
Access 1.000.000
educational resources
Create and share your
educational resources
(lesson plans, scenarios)
Create the digital
library of your school
Participate in online training
academies for teachers and
parents
Use self-assessment and
development tools for
teachers and schools
Participate in
international
innovative activities
http://portal.opendiscoveryspace.eu/
How to become and ODS
school- Step 2
Register on ODS
portal
http://portal.opendis
coveryspace.eu/
…and set-up the
community of
your school!
How to become and ODS
school- Step 3
Set goals and objectives
for the development of
your school
Connect with schools
from Europe!
Examples of school activities
Using iPads for Music
Education- creating “An iPad
Band”, Austria, BG/BRG
Schwechat.
Examples of school activities
Connecting schools with
Science Centers, using
augmented reality equipment
and OSR portal pathways-
Finland (multiple schools).
Video link:
http://vimeo.com/61730727
Examples of school activities
Bringing Nobel Prize Physics
into the classroom- Opening
the school to science centers
Collaboration between
local schools at the
region of Ilia for the
“Science of the
Olympics” project
Examples of school activities
Virtual connection
between a single pupil
school in the island of
Gavdos (the
southernmost island)
with Aghios Spyridonas
school in Cyprus,
Nicosia- Science and
Environmental Education
- more coming...
Examples of school activities
Teachers’ training on
Discover the Cosmos
(Portugal, Lisbon and
Chaves)
TED-X Kids
(Portugal,
Cantral
Tejo)
Examples of school activities
Exploring the Byzantine
Museum in a playful way,
using tablets and material
from the Collage portal
(Athens)
Collaborative activitites
Examples of school activities
Let’s share the
music!
Tychero, Evros
Athens
Athens
Chania, Crete
http://portal.opendiscoveryspace.eu/community/m
oirastoyme-ti-moysiki-enosoyme-ton-kosmo-let-
us-share-music-let-us-link-world-347
Collaborative activities
• Observation Weeks for the ODS Schools
• Eratosthenes' measurement of the
Earth's Circumference: 350 schools 37
countries
Examples of school activities
Eratosthenes Photo Contest in ODS environment 57 participations
What works in getting
schools to commit?
Seeking innovators
Building on a strong core of early adopters
Access:
• GALILEO schools (Portugal)
• Network for School Innovation (Greece)
• NHL Network (the Netherlands)
• ENIS and ELSA Networks (Austria)
• Digital Schools Network (Ireland).
Supporting the role of
change agent teachers
What is the mission of a change agent? • A pioneering teacher who leads the team of
the participating teachers from each school, and: • Takes initiative in order to implement
innovative practices that aim to have long-term effect on the development of the school as a whole.
• Develops a strategy for involving and disseminating the results of innovative practices to the whole school community
• Develops a strategy for dealing with resistance to change
• Reflects on the progress of organizational changes
• Explains why innovation is important to ensure long-term success
38 change management
workshops in 21 countries-
500 participants
Change management
workshops- First
indications
• This role seems to be having empowering impact on overcoming
obstacles to change that are associated with teachers’ perceived
low social status and lack of recognition in certain countries.
There is therefore a sense that at least in the first workshop there was a
general uncertainty and lack of confidence in teachers’ own power to
bring about change in their schools.
• In the second workshop there was greater awareness of their role
and their possible potential for managing change in their schools,
despite still connecting it with the central governing system and the school curricula restrictions.
Change management
workshops- First
indications
Change management strategies adopted based on needs analysis:
• Peer-to-peer support within and among schools, by organising
seminars for sharing good practices, knowledge and support.
• Building trust
• Opening the school to the community- engaging the total of the local
community into school life, building synergies with local actors/
external experts/ other schools at national or international level and
finding support (including funding) from local actors and European
Programmes (rural schools in smaller communities may be more
successful in engaging the community than schools in larger urban
areas).
• Synergies among schools identified as one of the strongest
incentives for innovation
• Differences found between Primary and Secondary Education in
terms of openness to change and innovation: greater need for
support and training for Secondary Education teachers.
Supporting the incorporation of
RBL into the overall development
strategy of the school
• Pedagogy
• Organisation and Management
• Intra-school collaboration among staff, parents and student
• Collaboration with other schools
• Professional Development of Staff
• Resources and Infrastructure
• Opening up to the community
• Participating in National and European Projects.
Ensuring the schools’ ongoing commitment to innovation, by
a) fostering their understanding of the benefits that technology can bring into
key aspects of the school as organisation,
b) assessing the real needs of the school,
c) creating a shared vision within the school community,
d) training the school staff in designing a development strategy.
Creating sub-networks
within the community
Development and support of sub-communities
at local level or thematic networks-> help to
sustain the expansion of the ODS
community of practice and innovation by
promoting exceptional schools that function
as hubs of innovation, at least at local level.
Examples:
• Network of Primary Schools of “Good Morning
Mr Higgs” project- 11 local schools and 3 from
Germany.
• School gardens Network: 70 schools from Crete
• 11 schools in the “Science of the Olympics”
project
• Network of Rural schools: Gavdos and Cypriot
schools
+ Engaging the
parents!
Providing individualised
support & incentives
• Addressing real needs for each school
• Support, training and motivation: • Online Teachers’ Academy,
• Webinars -> 3 international & 10 national webinares: Erasmus+
webinar and application support to 300 schools, “How to organise a
virtual visit to CERN”, “ISON comet’s journey” webinar
• Face-to-face national events
• Summer & Winter schools
• Contests (International ODS Educational scenario challenge, ODS
Summer School 2014 scholarships, school contests at National level
in Greece, Italy)- Next Summer Academy (5 courses): Attica, Greece,
July 13-18, 2014- Funded by ERASMUS+ ods.ea.gr -
• Handbook for school leaders
Focusing on
ICT culture in
the school
33
National training events
Serbia
Portugal –
Discover the
Cosmos
Austria “iPads in
action
Summer school, Panormo June 30- July 4th, 2013
(Participation funded by Comenius)
Winter school- Vilnius, Lithuania: January 27 –
February 1st 2013- 2nd: February 2014 (Participation
funded by Comenius)
Summer and Winter
schools for teachers
Next Summer Academy (5
courses): Attica, Greece, July 13-
18, 2014- Funded by ERASMUS+
ods.ea.gr -
Focusing on ICT culture in
the school
Year 1
Year 2
