EVERYDAY CREATIVITY – boosting the internal creative resources of European schools with Finnish models for education for creativity Erasmus Project

General information for the EVERYDAY CREATIVITY – boosting the internal creative resources of European schools with Finnish models for education for creativity Erasmus Project

EVERYDAY CREATIVITY – boosting the internal creative resources of European schools with Finnish models for education for creativity Erasmus Project
July 7, 2020 12:00 am
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Project Title

EVERYDAY CREATIVITY – boosting the internal creative resources of European schools with Finnish models for education for creativity

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 2017

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Pedagogy and didactics; Creativity and culture; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Project Summary

In the 21st century education on global level faces multiple challenges related to embracing the fast transformation of the society. Children have changed a lot recently, their attention is attracted (and distracted) by various real and virtual environments that engage them and make them willing to join all sorts of experiences and communities outside schools. The AIM of the project was using “everyday creativity” to better sustain these experiences within schools, empower and engage children for meaningful learning. Increasing “creativity” in various aspects of education makes schools better places for real learning if “creativity” is not seen as an “add-on” to regular curricular activities and it is not limited to teaching arts, but it is regarded as a complex phenomenon, manifested in everyday school practices: in the variety of methods and strategies used by teachers, in the variety of tools, technologies and materials that facilitate learning and – above all – in the way learners are involved, engaged and empowered during lessons and other school activities. The sources of inspiration for our project were the Finnish Core Curriculum (2016) and Pamela Burnard’s theory of “multiple musical creativities”.
The OBJECTIVES were: increasing creativity and innovation in everyday school practices in four European countries (Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands and Romania) by providing support and training to 20 teachers to focus upon the processes of creativity development in their everyday practices, motivating teachers, schools and children to showcase and boost creative practices in their schools, identify and promote uptake of creativity boosting methods and measure in one of the following areas of development: learning space and multi-sensory teaching; developing applicable skills through teaching; organization of interaction and technology in the school; connecting different subjects in learning and teaching (e.g. multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary education).
The core PARTICIPANTS of the project were teachers, school managers and educational project managers: 25 persons took part in the blended in-service training course organized within the project, 447 teachers and educational managers attended the national workshops where the previously trained teachers “multiplied” the learning outcomes within their school communities and beyond, over 1000 teachers, parents and other educational stakeholders took part at the multiplier and other dissemination events and the project successfully used the social media to reach to over ten thousand interested people across Europe who can all have a role in building up the “new education”.
The ACTIVITIES undertaken were: developing and promoting an online, interactive self-assessment tool (used by over 800 teachers); analyzing the results of the self-assessment and planning a blended training course; implementing the blended training through the Moodle platform of the University of Jyväskylä and incorporating in it a short-term joint staff training (including co-creating learning results, peer feedback and reflected school observation); making the training materials available as Open Education Resource through the project website; following up the training participants, supporting them in implementing local development projects and organising dissemination workshops; publishing a Teachers’ Handbook (Everyday Creativity: Boosting Creative Resources With Finnish Models Of Education); designing a brochure (Guidelines for Accelerators of Creativity) and educational posters for exploitation; disseminating the project results in large dissemination and multiplication events, as well as using multimedia tools (promotional films) and social media campaigns.
As a result of our project, in all the participating countries “everyday creativity” has become a central topic in workshops, panel discussions, multiplier events involving altogether over 7000 teachers and educational stakeholders, while on schools’ and classrooms’ level, the 25 participants at the blended course reported the following types of changes: pedagogical thinking (student autonomy, role of student); pedagogical change (student-centered pedagogy); learning space, learning environments, educational spaces; pedagogical tools (apps, materials); pedagogical approach (collaboration, co-teaching, cooperation, interdisciplinarity, learning by doing). In addition to the types of changes, teachers reported different goal settings, as LONG-TERM BENEFITS of their local development project: focus on community building, cooperation between students, teachers and parents; focus on students’ autonomy, empowering students, improving students critical thinking, placing students at the centre; learning by doing, exploratory learning, experimental learning, students’ own curiosity and creativity; rethinking the use of learning spaces; self-reflection, self-knowledge; differentiation; teachers’ revised role as facilitator.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 162595,75 Eur

Project Coordinator

Fundatia Centrul Educational Spektrum & Country: RO

Project Partners

  • M-Around Tanacsado es Szolgaltato Korlatolt Felelossegu Társaság
  • Scoala Gimnaziala “Jozsef Attila”
  • JYVASKYLAN YLIOPISTO
  • BORGORETE SOCIETA COOPERATIVA SOCIALE
  • STICHTING BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT FRIESLAND
  • Inthecity Project Development