TINKERING EU: Addressing the adults Erasmus Project

Project Title

TINKERING EU: Addressing the adults

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 adult education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2019

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Inclusion – equity; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses; Key Competences (incl. mathematics and literacy) – basic skills

Project Summary

‘Tinkering EU: Addressing the adults’ uses the Tinkering methodology with the goal to foster the socio-educational and personal development of adults, as well as their participation in civic and social life. The project aims to build adults’ engagement with science, improve their 21st century skills and address their low science capital. Tinkering is an innovative pedagogy pioneered by the Exploratorium of San Francisco. It supports the construction of knowledge within the context of building personally meaningful artifacts. It designs opportunities for people to “think with their hands” in order to construct meaning and understanding and develop skills useful for a lifetime. Research shows that Tinkering holds key benefits for learning, especially for those who say “they are not good at science”.
The project emerges from:
– disengagement of many people in Europe with science
– Technology/science competence gap increasing among citizens of different generations in Europe
– Need for 21st century skills in social and professional life
The project addresses adults and their families as well as adult educators (museum staff and community leaders).
It will reach directly about 600 individuals through:
-development of Tinkering activities that will be tested and integrated in the museums ‘offers’.
-definition of a methodological framework on the role of Tinkering in adult engagement.
-organisation of small-scale and transnational training workshops for museum staff and other adult educators, building their knowledge and skills in Tinkering.
-multiplier events for educators and other adults, carried out in the museums and or community centres/other settings.
-dissemination actions at local, national and European level.

Results
a) A series of Tinkering activities for adults
b) A methodological framework for the use of Tinkering to develop adults’ 21st century skills
c) Small-scale training and transnational training events for museum staff/adult learning organisations.
d) Multiplier events for the wide implementation of the activities, carried out with the involvement of adults from different socioeconomic background.
e) guidelines for focus groups that will explore the way museum educators work with adult groups and families especially those from disadvantaged communities.
f) a website containing all resources and activities from the project available to everybody.
g) a Europe-wide community of practice working on Tinkering and Adults
Qualitative impact
Adults: development of 21st century skills for adults and improvement of their relevance with science
Educators: improve their expertise in engaging with people from different backgrounds, use of new resources, material on Tinkering in their adult and family groups’ workshops.
Disadvantaged communities: empowerment of adults through engagement in science.
For the communities: development of expertise in using innovative tools such as the tinkering approach in their services and introduction to notions such as the Science Capital concept that could impact on other sectors of their work too
Overall the project aims to sustain a community of practice at a European level, contributing to the desire for informal learning organisations to become more inclusive places.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 439418 Eur

Project Coordinator

STICHTING NATIONAAL CENTRUM VOOR WETENSCHAPS- EN TECHNOLOGIECOMMUNICATIE & Country: NL

Project Partners

• FONDAZIONE MUSEO NAZIONALE DELLA SCIENZA E DELLA TECNOLOGIA LEONARDO DA VINCI
• SCIENCE CENTER NETZWERK
• Centrum Nauki Kopernik
• THE CHANCELLOR MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE
• ASSOCIATION TRACES THEORIES ET REFLEXIONS SUR L APPRENDRE LA COMMUNICATION ET L EDUCATION SCIENTIFIQUES