‘We Think Everywhere’ – New Pedagogies – Embracing the Digital World of Children Erasmus Project

Project Title

‘We Think Everywhere’ – New Pedagogies – Embracing the Digital World of Children

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 Schools Only

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2015

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: ICT – new technologies – digital competences; Creativity and culture; Pedagogy and didactics

Project Summary

This project investigated and developed innovative pedagogical methods in which digital media was used to generate thinking, knowledge and learning in very young children. Initial research revealed a dominant discourse where digital media was conceived as a set of tools to acquire and represent information; or as a place to use games to practice skills.
We challenged this view and developed teaching methods and learning strategies that use digital media as part of a multi-disciplinary approach involving communication, mathematics and science, humanities, social and civic competence, cultural awareness and creative expression supported, enriched and made visible to others using digital media. It has become part of the everyday life of the Pre-Schools involved.
This project was part of a professional development alliance that started in 2011. The alliance was a network of 5 schools in the UK and 5 in Sweden who have continued to collaborate even though some settings and personel have changed over time but who have continued developing curriculum using interdisciplinary projects with young children from 1 to 6 years old.
In this research our core objectives were to develop new teaching methods:
evolving environments in which digital media can be used alongside other materials and resources within flexible and inter-disciplinary approaches;
• that show how teachers can offer digital media to young children that promotes independence and creative outcomes
• that can be readily shared across national contexts and used by educators in ECE and beyond into primary phases of school
• that will be relevant when used with future digital
There were 10 school leaders of pedagogy, school administration and systems management, 20 teachers / educators working in classrooms with children aged 1-6 yrs and 150 children and their families working directly in project.
Our method was to agree a meta-project that had relevance for all children and exchange our observations of the children’s learning and our reflections on the adults teaching, done though digital exchanges online (through the use of secure shared folders, blogs and social messaging). These were enhanced through face to face meetings and through transnational exchange and evaluated against DIGCOMP: A Framework for Developing and Understanding Digital Competence in Europe.
Our outputs included a range of inspiring and informative on-line and hard copy resources in 2 written and spoken languages and workshop materials for training early years educators and setting leaders.
The project challenged traditional ideals and ways of seeing learning referencing Delueze and Guttarri’s Rhizome Theory, Bateson’s The Pattern that Connects and Reggio Emilia’s concept of 100 Languages. These conceptual frameworks have deeply influenced the development of pedagogy in each of the partner schools in both countries over the period of the project.
The project resulted in a series of case studies which draw upon the learning of semi-structured focus groups (identified shared network days and leadership meetings), personal reflective journals of each teacher, the documentation of process and shared analysis of pedagogical documentation produced within and as an outcome of the project.
The structure of the project invited international confrontation of multiple perspectives upon episodes of children’s meaning-making in group contexts using digital media as a tool of creative expression and enquiry. This shared analysis identified the patterns of development in children and pedagogical practice that chas been articulated and shared through the website, https://wethinkeverywhere.wordpress.com, books, video and training materials and replicated in other ECE contexts and beyond into Primary phase.
During the project we will have developed new pedagogies that exploit the potential of ICT which is a key issue addressed in the Communication on Rethinking Education (in particular, chapter 2.2), and evidenced the increase of digital competence which is one of the main pillars of the Digital Agenda for Europe [71], and also one of the Europe 2020 flagship initiatives.
Within the participating schools digital resources of all types are now used during lessons as part of the everyday life school and as an expressive language to facilitate and support enquiry.
Teachers have increased complexity of understanding and increased confidence in using digital technologies in meaningful, necessary ways that support children’s learning and communication and are able to train and mentor others within and beyond the participating school at a local, regional, national and international level. The new methods are transferrable for use with different digital platforms and digital hardware. It has important relevance to a wide audience and can be readily shared across national contexts and used by educators in ECE and beyond into primary.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 89788,9 Eur

Project Coordinator

Madeley Nursery School & Country: UK

Project Partners

• Woodlands Primary & Nursery School
• Bagarmossens förskolor/Södra Kärrtorps förskolor
• Ashmore Park Nursery School
• Södra Kärrtorps Förskolor
• Phoenix Nursery school
• Lange Erik
• Sma vanner