Collaborative learning platform with integrated remote laboratory environment in VET Erasmus Project

Project Title

Collaborative learning platform with integrated remote laboratory environment in VET

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 vocational education and training

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2018

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: ICT – new technologies – digital competences; Open and distance learning; Intercultural/intergenerational education and (lifelong)learning

Project Summary

CORELA is innovative strategic partnership project that promotes development, testing and implementation of contemporary collaborative learning methodology. The overall objective of the project is to contribute to improved quality of educational programs that are delivered by the VET providers. The project has the following specific objectives: to introduce innovative learning methodology; to enhance the employability of the students at VET institutions by providing them access to sector specific skills; to promote collaborative (peer) learning, to promote cooperation among VET providers, higher education institutions and enterprises in developing learning methodology that will respond to the dynamic needs of the industry.
The project consortium involves high schools – VET providers from Macedonia, Croatia and Slovenia, one higher education institution and an innovative ICT University spin-off enterprise. All project partners have rich background in implementation of different projects related to the application of innovative ICT solutions and collaborative learning into engineering education. The number of participants – on intellectual outputs and on two short-term training events – is twenty one. Twenty participants are electro-technical engineers and one is a psychologist.
CORELA introduces innovative, integrated remote virtual laboratories designed to be used by the VET providers. This project is a huge step forward by the VET providers in diversification and modernization of the learning methodology. The tailor made integrated remote virtual laboratories will not only enhance the employability and career prospects of the VET students by providing them access to sector-specific skills, but at the same time will support their creative potential and increase the innovative capacity of the VET providers from the participating countries.
Comparative studies have shown that students are motivated and willing to work in remote virtual laboratories. Moreover, most of the students consider virtual laboratories more effective than textbooks or other forms of simulations. Therefore, virtual remote laboratories have been increasingly popular and higher education institutions already took advantage on this concept and tools. Despite the fact that the project will introduce innovative and integrated, tailor made remote virtual laboratories for VET, the experience and good practices of the higher education institutions in using remote virtual laboratories are expected to bring added value to the project.
The emerging digital technologies influence dynamic needs of the industry for sector specific skills – for these reasons the project consortium includes innovative ICT company that will be involved in the planning, design and development of the platform (virtual remote laboratory).
CORELA combines collaborative learning with remote virtual laboratories (RVL) and applies them into VET education. The importance of RVLs is in-line with the need for technicians to be prepared to work within the modern collaborative international industrial environment. The RVL collaborative platform is conceived to be self-sustainable. Once a user is created, and virtual experiments are implemented, automatically all exercises become public for use in a growing community. This allows exploitation of the RVL platform far beyond the partners involved in this project. The project will also include development of interactive multimedia training courses that will provide opportunity for the VET teaching staff to gain knowledge to design, implement and maintain virtual laboratory experiments in a collaborative environment.
The following activities were taken to contribute the project to reach its objectives and produce the expected results: development of new teaching methodology – collaborative remote virtual laboratories in VET; development of the platform for collaborative learning with remote laboratories; design of multimedia courses and educational materials; Implementation of remote laboratory exercises and evaluation of the developed methodology, two multiplier events, four transnational meetings and two short-term staff training events. The dissemination of the project results is through teachers’ and pupils’ training, scientific publications, multimedia tutorials, web and social pages,YouTube channel, the multiplier events etc.
Impact of CORELA: diversification and modernization of learning methodologies applied by the respective VET providers; contribute to the personal development, enhance employabilty and improve career prospects of VET students; improve the competences of the VET teaching staff; flow, exchange and co-creation of knowledge by VET, higher education, and industry.
CORELA is a two and a half years strategic partnership project that was implemented in the period 01.10.2018 to 30.04.2021. It was prolonged for 7 months due Covid-19 pandemic.

Project Website

http://corela.mihajlopupin.mk/wp/

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 115583,25 Eur

Project Coordinator

Sredno elektrotehnicko uciliste na Grad Skopje Mihajlo Pupin & Country: MK

Project Partners

• DTK Smart-tech
• UNIVERZA V MARIBORU
• Tehnicka skola Rudera Boskovica Vinkovci
• SOLSKI CENTER KRANJ