A Day of Collaboration and Learning

The day was thoughtfully structured to combine strategic planning with practical experience:

In the morning, partners gathered at UdiGitalEdu, the research group of the University of Girona coordinating the project, to:

• Establish project protocols ensuring smooth coordination and collaboration
• Plan dissemination activities to raise awareness and engage target groups, focusing on secondary multicultural schools
• Co-design tools for collecting data to perform a thorough current situation analysis, ensuring that project resources are based on solid evidence and informed decisions

In the afternoon, the group moved to the CIRS (Underwater Vision and Robotics Research Centre), where partners:

• Participated in capacity-building workshops on low-cost underwater robotics
• Explored innovative STEAM teaching methodologies and practical applications for marine science and technology education
• Shared knowledge and experiences regarding inclusive education principles and culturally responsive teaching, ensuring the DIVE outputs meet the needs of diverse student populations

Looking Ahead: Transforming STEM Education

Over the next three years, DIVE will:

• Develop an inclusive hands-on curriculum in the fields related to underwater robotics and marine science
• Train 260 teachers in innovative, interdisciplinary STEAM approaches
• Reach 4,000 students in multicultural classrooms
• Build a sustainable network of educators across Spain (Catalonia and Canary Islands), Greece, and Portugal to foster collaboration and knowledge exchange

The Girona kick-off provided a dynamic space for partners to connect, share expertise, and lay the groundwork for the project’s objectives.

Stay tuned as we dive into this exciting journey, shaping the future of STEAM education across Europe!

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Over 30 teachers from Spain, Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, Ireland, and Greece came together to explore how Montessori-inspired methods and creative technologies can change how mathematics is taught and learned in primary and lower secondary schools, especially in multicultural classrooms.

Over three inspiring days, participants:

• Explored the first version of the MARIAN Lesson Plan Collection
• Tried out classroom activities with children and saw how hands-on and technology-based learning can help students understand mathematics better
• Discussed the benefits of using active, inclusive, and creative methods in teaching mathematics

After these first training sessions, participants will try different activities in their classrooms and share their experiences. Their feedback will help the consortium create the second version of the MARIAN Lesson Plan Collection, which will be discussed at a meeting in Sofia.

Next, participants will become teacher trainers, sharing the MARIAN approach by leading workshops in their own countries. They will also help update the MARIAN Lesson Plan Collection in several languages. The project’s goal is to introduce new, inclusive, and engaging ways of teaching mathematics in classrooms across Europe.

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Prof. Marina Bers is a world-renowned expert in Computational Thinking and the creator of tools such as ScratchJr and the KIBO robot, designed to introduce young children to programming both with and without screens. She has an extraordinary career as a disciple of Seymour Papert, a pioneer in Artificial Intelligence and Educational Programming.

With over 50 million users worldwide, ScratchJr is a free programming environment developed for children ages 5-7. With ScratchJr, children can learn the powerful ideas of Computer Science and Literacy through programming and customizing their own animations, stories, and games.

ScratchJr was created by the DevTech Research Group in partnership with Lifelong Kindergarten at MIT and the Playful Invention Company and now generously supported by the Scratch Foundation. In the past decade, DevTech created copious learning and teaching resources, researched learning outcomes with ScratchJr and its curricula, and worked with the global community to support the use of ScratchJr.

Mariona and Jordi: 6 Months at DevTech

It all started exactly a year ago when Prof Jordi Freixenet received a grant from the ministry to conduct a research stay at DevTech at Boston College. Jordi and Mariona (his life partner) spent six months working at DevTech and learning from Prof. Bers and her entire team. The experience was incredible, both personally and professionally.

Prof. Marina Bers was very generous and invited us from day one to her classes, ranging from undergraduate courses to those for master’s and doctoral students. Marina gives an undergraduate course called “Tech Tools for Playful Learning,” which includes around thirty students from two different degrees: education and computer science. The course was fascinating, with students conceptualizing and designing tools and methods to help children learn creatively using various technologies. We held multiple sessions in the maker space at Boston College (by the way, BC has two maker spaces: one for academic purposes and another for the broader university community). We also visited schools, so students could test their ideas in real-world settings, working with small groups of children.

The course for master’s and doctoral students was obviously more research-oriented, and it gave us the opportunity to read extensively and learn from the expertise of a great professor.

During our time at DevTech, we gained insights into how research is designed, planned and developed there. We became fully integrated into the team, participating in all the activities of the research group.

Currently, we have already started a joint research collaboration between UdiGitalEdu and DevTech focused on teacher training in ScratchJr and the translation of the CAL curriculum into Catalan, with direct collaboration from several schools in Salt, facilitated by the municipality of Salt through the Tekhné Chair. Specifically, 11 teachers from El Veïnat School in Salt are participating in a pilot program while also helping us refine the Catalan translation of the CAL curriculum. This research is expected to expand to include more schools in Salt.

Marina, the Queen of ScratchJr

The visit of Prof. Marina Bers to Girona, Salt, and Barcelona was both fascinating and intense. We were eager for Marina to experience firsthand our projects, our people, and the schools we collaborate with. We visited the CIRS, where Prof Pere Ridao explained various robots, research initiatives, and the creation of the spin-off company IQUA Robotics.

We held several working sessions with UdiGitalEdu to introduce our team and projects, allowing Marina to guide and advise us on future research. Additionally, we visited the FEP and the old town campus, explored the GAMAR, and participated in a seminar with other FEP researchers. We also had the opportunity to greet the Rector of the University of Girona.

Perhaps the most memorable part of her visit was our trip to Salt, where we visited El Veïnat and La Farga schools. The highlight of the week occurred when some children playing in the schoolyard approached Marina, recognizing her as the creator of ScratchJr. They asked for her autograph and crowned her “the Queen of ScratchJr.”

On Thursday, we traveled to Barcelona, where, together with the Fundació Bofill, we held an exclusive seminar with Prof Bers in the HUB Social Barcelona. The event explored a global perspective on how other countries have integrated computational sciences and the successful strategies implemented for teachers, schools, and children. Discussions emphasized the importance of computational thinking as a key subject to secure the future of all children in Catalonia, promote territorial equity through computational thinking, and explore innovative methodologies—with and without screens—to introduce computational thinking starting from age five.

At the seminar, Marina played a key role, speaking about pedagogy and technology, teaching children to code as a way to teach them to become well-rounded individuals, and sharing numerous examples and experiences of how ScratchJr and KIBO are used in different parts of the world. Following this, Jordi Freixenet presented the CAL curriculum in Catalan and took the opportunity to promote the Erasmus+ MARIAN project, the natural continuation of MonTech. Other speakers included Héctor Gardó and Carles Nieto from the Bofill Foundation, and Jordi Serarols, Deputy Director-General for Research and Digital Culture at the Department of Education and Vocational Training Generalitat de Catalunya.

As if that weren’t enough, on Thursday evening, the 78th ScratchEd Meetup Barcelona, “Special Marina Bers,” was held at the FAB Casa del Mig space—an incredible event (note that it’s the 78th meetup, and they meet once a month). The entire Scratch community of Catalonia had the chance to share projects, pedagogy, and technology with Marina. You can find a summary of this event in this Twitter thread: https://x.com/scratchcatala/status/1876636189475983581

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On April 16, 2024, around 100 people actively participated in this event, demonstrating great dedication throughout the daily sports program. This program was organized by Head Coach Kyriako Arapi and Erasmus Coach Thodoris Karaiskos, in collaboration with the 2nd Primary School of Nea Peramos, represented by Ms. Ioanna Riga.

BaskEUBall focuses not only on sports competition but also on using information and communication technologies (ICT) to enhance the educational experience. One of the project’s highlights is the use of video conferencing sessions, allowing children from different countries to connect virtually, breaking down geographical and cultural barriers. These online meetings facilitate the creation of bonds and cultural exchange, promoting understanding and tolerance among participants​.

Additionally, the after-school program integrates technological and artistic projects, such as creating drawing machines and building team mascots. These activities foster creativity and teamwork and are conducted through the Cokrea platform, which facilitates collaboration between students from different countries.

BaskEUBall serves as a vehicle for cultural exchange and collaborative learning, providing young people with valuable technical and social skills for their future.

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During the event, not only each organisation introduced the project, its journey and its results to the attendees, including teachers, school principals and policymakers, but also put on a day to remember for all participants.

Concretely, in Escola El Pla (Salt, Spain), upper primary pupils, with the teachers’ support, organised a talent fair in the morning, where kindergarten children and attendees could observe Talent Maker workshops demos and some of their final products.

Then, after a brief formal presentation of the project, there was a round table discussion to listen to pupils, teachers and the school board about the experience of implementing an Erasmus+ project like Talent Maker and its benefits for education. The reunion finished with a standing lunch.

We are sure that Talent Maker Day inspired the attendees to reflect on the future of talent promotion and Maker Education in academic contexts and the transversal use of creative technologies considering the needs of multicultural schools in Europe.

With that event, the partnership gave closer to this two-year Project which they will keep carrying out without European funding.

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The University of Girona and the Pla de Salt school promote an international research project. It does this with the University of Craiova, the Constantin Ianculescu school from Romania, the Action Synergy organization, and the Alikarnassou school from Greece. These partners will explore the effectiveness of a set of learning activities developed by the whole team that the Pla de Salt school has put into operation to check good practice.

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During the meeting, the partners visited one of the consortium schools (Constantin Ianculescu), discussed the Methodology (IO1) and the format of the Digital Educative Capsules (IO2) and participated and created some Talent Maker Workshops. Moreover, they assigned tasks and organized the next phases.

Representatives of all partners attended the meeting hosted by the University of Craiova and Constantin Ianculescu School: UdiGitalEdu (Girona, Spain), El Pla School (Salt, Spain), University of Craiova (Craiova, Romania), Constantin Ianculescu School (Cârcea, Romania), Action Synergy (Athens, Greece) and Alikarnassou School (Crete, Greece).

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La càtedra ha estat impulsada per el grup de recerca UdigitalEdu, format per membres de l’Institut de Recerca Educativa (IRE) i l’Institut de Visió per Computador i Robòtica (Vicorob). UdigitalEdu investiga formes d’aprenentatge que ajudin als nens i les nenes a ser més creatius, més crítics i a desenvolupar valors positius, a través d’experiències divertides que barregen la Ciència, la Tecnologia i l’Art.

La Càtedra TEKHNÉ, dirigida per el Dr. Jordi Freixenet, es centra en l’estudi, la recerca i la disseminació del coneixement en la intersecció dels camps de l’Educació, la Tecnologia i el Desenvolupament Humà, mitjançant l’organització d’activitats de formació, recerca, transferència, debat i difusió. La intenció de la càtedra és convertir la Universitat de Girona i el municipi de Salt en referents acadèmics i d’administració local, respectivament, en l’esfera internacional de les Tecnologies per a l’Aprenentatge Creatiu i la Inclusió Social.

Les activitats de la càtedra arribaran als infants i joves de les escoles i instituts de Salt, però també i especialment, als mestres i educadors, que seran els veritables motors del canvi de l’ecosistema educatiu de Salt i Girona. TEKHNÉ serà un espai de desenvolupament, de creativitat i de canvi que proporcionarà eines i recursos als nens, nenes i joves, professors i professores. Un espai on dissenyar oportunitats perquè les persones “pensin amb les seves mans” (aprenentatge MAKER), i tot fent-ho, construeixin sentit i comprensió, a través de projectes que responguin a necessitats socials.

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Organitzat per Informatics Europe, una associació de departaments de ciències informàtiques i laboratoris de recerca d’Europa i zones veïnes, i patrocinat per Microsoft, multinacional tecnològica, el premi Best Practices in Education es va lliurar en una cerimònia especial celebrada a Roma, Itàlia, durant la 15a  cimera Europea de la Informàtica (ECSS 2019).

El guanyador d’aquesta edició ha estat el projecte Erasmus+ InventEUrs (I4EU), considerat un projecte amb un enfocament innovador alhora de connectar nens desfavorits en cooperació amb altres nens de països i escoles diferents mitjançant l’ús de tecnologies innovadores i mitjans digitals per fomentar un aprenentatge creatiu.

El premi va ser recollit per l’Eduard Muntaner Perich i en Jordi Freixenet, de la Universitat de Girona, la Safia Barikzai, de la London South Bank University i la Valentina Poggioni i l’Alfredo Milani, de la Universitat de Perugia, en representació dels altres membres del consorci, l’Escola Veïnat de Salt, l’escola romanesa Constantin Ianculescu, i l’Instituto Istruzione Superiore “G.Giovagnoli” d’Itàlia, que durant dos anys han treballat conjuntament per tirar endavant la iniciativa.

“Esperem que la visibilitat que ens atorgui el premi animi a més escoles i professors a explorar experiències d’aprenentatge connectades, donant la veu als nens perquè puguin connectar amb nens d’altres països, investigar problemes socials i co-crear projectes alhora que desenvolupen les seves habilitats digitals” – ha explicat l’Eduard Muntaner Perich.

Aquest any, el premi a les millors pràctiques en educació s’ha repartit amb una altra iniciativa guanyadora, “Welcome.TU.code”, amb qui es repartiran els 5.000€ que Microsoft aporta com a premi. La subvenció es destinarà a donar continuïtat als projectes guanyadors.

Premi sobre les millors pràctiques en educació

D’acord amb la seva missió de fomentar i promoure la qualitat docent en informàtica, Informatics Europe presenta anualment el “Best Practices in Education”. L’edició d’enguany s’ha destinat a destacar les iniciatives educatives europees d’informàtica que promouen la inclusió i el desenvolupament de diferents grups d’estudiants com persones grans, immigrants o persones amb diversitat funcional.

Podeu visitar www.informatics-europe.org/awards/education-award.html per obtenir més informació.

Font i fotos: Informatics Europe

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