Cross-cutting geospatial and environmental STEAM instruments for the new generation Erasmus Project

Project Title

Cross-cutting geospatial and environmental STEAM instruments for the new generation

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for school education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2020

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Environment and climate change; ICT – new technologies – digital competences; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Project Summary

Geospatial thinking is a blending of knowledge and skills that supports people in identifying and interpreting location, distance, relationships, orientation, movement, change, patterns, and trends in geoenvironmental space. As a cross-cutting ability for STEAM disciplines, social sciences and humanities, as well as for several tasks of daily life, it is an imperative ability which must be cultivated.
In the era of “digital natives”, open linked data, digital earth, ubiquitous mapping, citizen science, location-based services, and geospatial intelligence have been integrated into everyone’s lives. Students in particular, have been raised in a digital media world, requiring a media-rich learning environment. A new civil society of Spatial Citizens is thus emerging, with the perception, consciousness, and ability to understand, map, communicate, and design their world. GOSTEAM aims to develop educational hands-on STEAM activities in the fields of Geographic Information Science and Technology, Cartography, and Environmental Science for shaping the next generation of geospatially and environmentally aware citizens.
TThe objectives of GOSTEAM are: a) to transfer academic knowledge and research practices to secondary education and b) to apply, in and outside the classroom, research methodologies and new technologies that tackle complex geospatial problems. GOSTEAM targets teachers/educational staff and secondary education students in four European Countries, cultivating student’s cognitive abilities and skills, such as problem-solving and critical thinking, in the interdisciplinary context of environmental literacy and global awareness.
The GOSTEAM consortium has been formed on the basis of the high-quality expertise of the partners, their geographical distribution, and previously successful collaboration. Six partners (2 higher education institutions, 3 schools, 1 science centre) from 4 EU countries (Sweden, Austria, Italy, Greece), offer: (a) pedagogical expertise for designing innovative learning experiences for the project’s target groups, (b) expertise in Geospatial Science and Environmental Studies, and (c) expertise in assessment, learning outcomes, and recognition mechanisms.
The activities planned follow three main lines of action: (i) pedagogical research and design, (ii) transfer of academic knowledge and research expertise in secondary education, and (iii) in and outside the classroom implementation and validation activities.
Methodologically, GOSTEAM will draw the attention of students to geospatial topics by simulating the work of the researcher in the classroom, endorsing a better understanding of geospatial sciences, and promoting inquiry-based science teaching and learning. A compact management will assist the partnership to produce all planned results, including Project Coordination and Reporting, Quality Control and Management Assessment, Communication, and Dissemination and Exploitation.
Tangible results expected during the project include:
• Development of educational hands-on STEAM activities in Geospatial and Environmental Science
• Deployment of strategies and methodologies to link hands-on activities to formal curricula
• Implementation and validation of activities in four countries
• Setting up of a special GOSTEAM Community within the Open Schools for Open Societies Portal (OSOS), to support collaboration
• Organization of a joint staff training activity and of eight multiplier events
• Creation of the “Handbook on Geospatial Education for STEAM”.
A significant impact on the partner organizations and the educational community is envisaged during and beyond the project’s life cycle, at various scales. At European scale, the GOSTEAM community on the OSOS Portal will be easily assessed by a wide European education community. The established Special Interest Group (SIG) on Geospatial Thinking, by AGILE (Association of Geographic Information Laboratories in Europe) serves as a dissemination hub at European and International levels. GOSTEAM Handbook will be circulated to policy makers and educational authorities to demonstrate the value of the project’s innovative approach so that they seriously consider it.
GOSTEAM results have the potential of longer-term benefits, beyond the funding period. The educational framework, the hands-on activities, the community on OSOS, and the Handbook on Geospatial Education for STEAM will favour the adoption of the GOSTEAM approach and resources beyond its completion by educational staff and policy-makers and will influence future policies and practices. GOSTEAM consortium is planning to use the project as a ground for a pan-European initiative to shape the next generation of geospatially and environmentally aware citizens. In order to achieve this goal, the GOSTEAM network will be not only sustained, but also expanded via e-twinning actions.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 318708 Eur

Project Coordinator

LUNDS UNIVERSITET & Country: SE

Project Partners

• Ystad Gymnasium
• BUNDESGYMNASIUM UND BUNDESREALGYMNASIUM SCHWECHAT
• NATIONAL TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY OF ATHENS – NTUA
• ELLINOGERMANIKI AGOGI SCHOLI PANAGEA SAVVA AE
• Fondazione IDIS-Città della Scienza