Holistic approach towards problem-based ICT education based on international cooperation in pandemic conditions Erasmus Project

Project Title

Holistic approach towards problem-based ICT education based on international cooperation in pandemic conditions

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 : Partnerships for Digital Education Readiness

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2020

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Open and distance learning; ICT – new technologies – digital competences; International cooperation, international relations, development cooperation

Project Summary

During the COVID-19-induced pandemic, the entire European Community has been facing serious challenges. The COVID-19 has a strong influence on higher education. The European universities switched to distance learning for the safety of students and teaching staff. The shortcomings of the traditional teaching practice to adopt to pandemic conditions have become more explicit. The main challenges have been: 1) Motivating students for active participation; 2) Organizing laboratory exercises; 3) Assessment of students´ competences.

Besides challenges imposed by COVID-19 pandemic, there is a strong need for transformation of education: 1) While in the industrial society the main focus of education was to contribute to the development of procedural knowledge, in the information or knowledge society the development of conceptual and metacognitive knowledge is increasingly considered important; 2) According to modern learning theories, knowledge cannot be transmitted, but has to be constructed by each learner in the appropriate social context; 3) Student-active teaching methods with emphasis on student collaboration and reflection on the learning process are shown to be much more appropriate for the new needs. 4) Assessment methods are shown to be the key factor that steers the way students learn. It is therefore of great importance to develop assessment methods that support development of 21st century skills. Constructive alignment of learning goals, teaching methods and assessment practice is therefore a key issue.

The project aims to address the needs of adapting teaching and assessment methods to pandemic conditions, but also adapting the education system to the 21st century (or knowledge-society) needs and state-of-the art pedagogical research; This general objective will be achieved by applying the holistic approach through mutual transnational cooperation among four university partners from Poland, Norway, Serbia and Bulgaria, and a number of additional industrial partners. The basic innovation lies in the holistic approach covering the set of the activities: novel teaching methodology, elaboration of new courses programmes, edition of digital materials (manuals, reports, problems, exercises, tests, etc.), writing textbooks and training of academic teachers to involve them in this new teaching way.

The specific objectives of the project are as follows:
1) To develop a methodology for problem-based teaching and corresponding assessment methods suitable for use in pandemic conditions, and put them into context of modern learning theories;
2) To develop methodology for teacher training that facilitates adoption of the new teaching and assessment practice;
3) To develop digital teaching and learning materials in the selected areas of ICT based on the above approach.

The following results will be achieved:
1) The innovative problem-based methodology under pandemic conditions will be developed and will be supported by appropriate digital presentations.
2) Digital resources will be created in educating teachers for acquiring new skills related to the problem-based methodology. Detailed schedules, presentations and recorded movies will be accessed at the project website.
3) Digital teaching resources will be created in selected areas of ICT applicable for a group of problem-based courses. At least eight courses will be modernized. The introduction-to-lecture movies, interactive lecture presentations, project statements, lab exercises and online exam tests will be created.
4) At least three multimedia books will be prepared with the aim to enable students to follow online lectures and prepare exams under pandemic conditions. A collection of students’ lab projects sharing best practices within partner universities will be edited.

The target groups that will be addressed are students, teachers, higher education institutions and industrial companies.

The innovative products in the field of education produced during project duration will be available via a website. Results will be presented to the higher education and industrial community through multiplier events, TV and newspapers interviews, as well as on social and professional networks. We will share the results of this project through four conference or journal papers in the field of education.

These results will make higher education to be more attractive for nowadays students and will improve its quality. The level of digital competence of teachers and students will be improved. The links among students and companies will be established or enhanced. The universities will attract a larger number of domestic and foreign students. Some of the long-term goals are to continue collaboration among four partner universities through the programme “European universities” and to increase students’ employability.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 234700 Eur

Project Coordinator

POLITECHNIKA BIALOSTOCKA & Country: PL

Project Partners

• NORGES TEKNISK-NATURVITENSKAPELIGE UNIVERSITET NTNU
• UNIVERSITY OF RUSE ANGEL KANCHEV
• UNIVERZITET U NISU