Educational Transformation for the 21st Century

<< Background >>In a VUCA world (volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity), it is crucial for educational systems to adapt quickly and effectively to change. The ability to adapt was at the heart of our project, driven by the participating institutes ITECH, CTE and INFRA.run. The project focused on training professionals to lead and support these transformations, using digital tools to ensure safe and compliant change and learning processes. Our aim was not only to implement change, but also to empower teachers to create dynamic and motivating learning environments where students can make meaningful choices and develop the collaborative and creative skills needed to meet the challenges of the future.In this project, we developed solutions to the following needs: Monitoring and evaluating the current state of the institutes, training agile coaches to support the transformation, developing and integrating open source technologies, and developing and implementing an agile workshop format for students in the field of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).These objectives are closely aligned with Erasmus priorities, and promise significant value. We aimed to act as a multiplier to drive digital transformation and sustainability action.<< Objectives >>According to the application we wanted to Objective 1: Develop and conduct a school evaluation for a strategic development planIn order to promote sustainable development with a focus on digital transformation and inclusion, we first carried out a comprehensive evaluation based on the Erasmus priorities and SWOT analyses.Objective 2: Training agile coaches to support the educational transformationWe improved digital readiness and resilience by embedding agile methods in our institutions and training agile coaches to drive adaptability and continuous learning.Objective 3: Integration of free and open source technologiesIn collaboration with INFRA.RUN, we have integrated FOSS (free and open source software) at ITECH and CTE, focussing on communication and document management tools to enhance collaborative and inclusive digital learning environments.Objective 4: Agile development of digital and inclusive learning arrangements in the field of sustainability Agile coaches supported the development of STEM-based projects that deal with climate change and sustainability and promote interdisciplinary approaches and inclusion, particularly for students with Asperger's syndrome and autism.<< Implementation >>CTE and ITECH carried out an analysis of European competence frameworks such as DigComp, GreenComp, EntreComp and 21st Century Skills. Based on these frameworks, we jointly developed an online questionnaire to assess the current situation in schools. The target groups for this survey included key stakeholders such as school management, companies and their trainers, teachers, trainees and parents. Based on the results,we carried out a SWOT analysis and developed a strategic development plan for the school.We developed a training programme for agile coaches, creating a specific curriculum tailored to the needs of the project, and each school selected colleagues to receive the training. ITECH organised a series of workshops to train these agile coaches, offering both online and face-to-face sessions. These coaches later helped with the development of Mint-based projects. With our partner INFRA.run, we created and delivered onboarding sessions on an open source collaboration and video sharing platform for learners and teachers. Based on the needs these groups, as well as the technical demands of CTE and ITECH, requirements for the use of FOSS were defined and implemented. CTE and ITECH implemented agile learning arrangements.<< Results >>The project delivered several key outputs, starting with the development and deployment of a comprehensive questionnaire based on current competence frameworks like digicomp 2.1, entrecomp, 21st century skills and green skills. This facilitated a SWOT analysis with stakeholders to set future goals.We developed a curriculum for agile coaches, leading to regular training at ITECH and LTTA sessions for CTE teachers, both online and in-person. This training enabled the formation of specialized teacher teams at ITECH focused on sustainability and inclusion, and similar teams at CTE conducting agile workshops on sustainability.A major technical achievement was the implementation from INFRA.run of an open-source platform using Moodle, Nextcloud, Collabora, Keycloak, BigBlueButton, and Matrix, supported by guidelines and tested with 500 students. Agile workshop formats were planned as learning arrangements in which students developed solutions to SDGs problems. The objectives were taken from real problems of citizens' initiatives and the SDGs. Around 200 students from several countries worked together on site and online as part of the project.A summary of exemplary results can be found on the website www.edutrans21.eu.