Engaging Students in the creation of their own STEAM learning Erasmus Project

Project Title

Engaging Students in the creation of their own STEAM learning

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 2019

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Pedagogy and didactics; Early School Leaving / combating failure in education; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Project Summary

Our project is a 3-year programme of research and development in STEAM education and training. (STEAM is the acronym for Science, Technology, Art and Design, and Mathematics) We have called our project STEAMing – short for “STEAM: INternational Guidance to best practice .” We undertake this R+D programme as a partnership of 5 institutions providing primary and secondary education in 5 different countries: Ireland, Croatia, Norway, Portugal, and Greece.

Increasing knowledge and competence in STEAM subjects in order to foster essential innovation and creativity features as a key priority in European and National policy statements for the year 2020 and beyond. Our project addresses this need through an identification and analysis of what appears to be best practice in STEAM education at primary and secondary school level in 5 different countries with a contrasting range of socio-economic, demographic, and educational circumstances. The children and families served by our 5 partner organisation and their associates have a corresponding diversity of social, economic and educational needs and experiences. We address the particular needs of children from migrant and itinerant communities; children with special educational needs; and ethnic and linguistic minorities. We also address the uneven but still widespread persistence of the relative disengagement and under-achievement of girls in STEAM subjects.

Within this context, our trans-European investigation aims to explore the crucial questions of “what works, where, why, and for whom” in STEAM education Our findings and conclusions will be used to produce an innovative range of practical products and resources for the training and support of all members of our target groups in any European country – teachers, school leaders, educational advisors, administrators, and policy-makers. Through the wider dissemination and exploitation of our outputs to and by our target groups we hope to facilitate an enhancement of STEAM teaching and learning that will ultimately make a significant positive impact on the educational engagement and attainment of their pupils and students – the ultimate beneficiaries of our project across the European area.

Our research and development programme will feed into the development and delivery of the project’s major products. These will include:

(a) Initial and updated “State of the Art” reports from each partner on key issues of implementing and innovating STEAM education in their own countries, regions and institutions;
(b) A synoptic overview of these reports relating them to general European policy debates and initiatives;
(c) One or more detailed case-studies and analyses by each partner of what appears to be demonstrably best practice in STEAM education in their own institutions and local educational networks;
(d) Films and other presentations made by the partners to illustrate the findings and conclusions from their case-studies and demonstrate “best practice” in operation.
(e) a substantial handbook of STEAM education and innovation to accompany our training courses (see below) or as a stand-alone product

All of these outputs, together with key materials and resources from other sources, will be made available and freely downloadable through a publicly accessible STEAMing website. This will operate as an interactive, online resource pack updated as the project progresses and sustainable after its lifetime.

In addition to establishing and maintaining this STEAMing website, our strategy for the wider dissemination and exploitation of our outputs encompasses the development of a 5-day residential training course for members of our target groups in all European areas. During the project’s lifetime, we will deliver 2 pilot versions of this residential course, funded by delegates’ fees which themselves are eligible for ERASMUS+ KA1 funding. The course will be accompanied by an 80 or 90 page course handbook presenting our findings, reports and conclusions. The course and handbook will be freely downloadable from the public website for members of our target groups to use as a residential or online blended CPD programme for the training and support of teachers and associated professionals in their own and other institutions.

For these and other purposes related to our dissemination strategy, we will also deliver one 5-day residential training course in STEAM education and innovation at each of our partner institutions during the project’s lifetime. These will be offered to members of our partner institutions’ own staff. Course fees, travel costs and subsistence will be met from within the project’s budget as Learning, Teaching and Training Activities designed to embed STEAM education and innovations within their institutions’ mainstream cultures and structure.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 359290 Eur

Project Coordinator

Clare Education Centre & Country: IE

Project Partners

• Osnovna skola Matije Gupca
• Coláiste Mhuire Gan Smál
• Luster kommune
• DIRECTORATE OF PRIMARY EDUCATION OF WESTERN THESSALONIKI
• AGRUPAMENTO DE ESCOLAS CARLOS GARGATE